A 32-year-old man from Chicago lost his life on Tuesday when he was involved in an Illinois truck vs. motorcycle accident, according to the Chicago Daily Herald. The crash occurred in Elk Grove Township around 11:40 AM.
The truck was headed in a westerly direction on Higgins Road, just west of Landmeier, where it was in the left lane while turning right turn into a parking lot. The motorcycle rider was in the right lane and hit the side of the truck as it was turning into the lot.
The motorcyclist suffered severe head and chest injuries. He was rushed by ambulance to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge where there is a Level I trauma center. Physicians were initially able to revive him, but he passed away around 1:30 PM.
The Cook County Sheriff’s Department responded to the accident, and the Sheriffs accident reconstruction unit is investigating.
It is not been reported if Chicago motorcycle accident attorneys are involved in the case yet. Once involved, they will certainly look into whether there was negligence on the part of the truck driver in swinging the right turn from the left lane.
WGN news is reporting that the victim was Mariusz Koziel, age 32, who resided on the Northwest Side of Chicago.
According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, in the year 2009 there was a total of 3,846 Illinois motorcycle accidents. In those crashes, 130 motorcyclists were killed and 3,152 were injured. The State further reports that there were a total of 9,319 Illinois truck accidents last year. In those tractor-trailer crashes, 62 people were killed and 1,603 were injured.