WL mom, girl die, 
10 hurt in separate head-on crashes

BARRINGTON HILLS – Two separate head-on collisions Saturday left a mother and daughter dead and sent 10 people to regional hospitals.

A Wonder Lake woman and her daughter died in a three-vehicle crash Saturday morning on Route 62 in Barrington Hills. The woman’s other daughter and four other people also were hospitalized after the collision.

Later in the day, five people were injured in a two-vehicle collision on Route 176 in Prairie Grove.

Barbara R. Page, 30, of Wonder Lake, died at the scene of the collision on Route 62 near Bateman Road, according to a news release from the Barrington Hills police. She had been driving a 2007 Ford Focus east on Route 62, crossed the double-yellow lines and struck the rear of a 1997 Nissan Sentra. The Sentra had been heading west. The Focus continued on and collided head-on with a 1996 GMC van.

Page died shortly after the crash, which was reported at 9:21 a.m., according to the release. Her two daughters, ages six and seven, were taken to Saint Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates for treatment. The 7-year-old later died of her injuries. The 6-year-old was in critical condition Saturday at Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge. The names of the children are being withheld, according to the release.

Otilio Soto-Lopez, of Carpentersville, had been driving the GMC. He and three passengers were taken to Saint Alexius Medical Center for treatment, according to the news release.

Route 62 between Route 68 and Bateman Road was closed until nearly 3 p.m. as a result of the collision.

The Barrington Hills Police Department is investigating the collision along with the Lake County Major Crash Assistance Team and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Barrington Hills Police have requested that anyone with information about the crash call the Investigations Division at 847-551-3006.

Five people were injured in the head-on collision on Route 176 Saturday afternoon.

A blue Mazda sedan collided with a beige Chevrolet sedan on Route 176 near Barreville Road in Prairie Grove. Nine people were taken to local hospitals. Two helicopters were called in to assist with transporting the injured, Nunda Township Fire Protection District Deputy Chief Mike Keenan said.

At least one of those injured in the Mazda was a child. A small girl cried as the boy was taken away in a stretcher to a waiting ambulance. Emergency crews removed the driver of the Mazda from the car with help from the Jaws of Life. He also was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

The driver of the Mazda and three passengers were taken to the hospital. Three were taken to Centegra Hospital – McHenry, and the fourth was taken to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington, said Ron Lyons, director of public safety for Prairie Grove Police Department. None had life-threatening injuries, Lyons said.

The woman driving the Chevrolet was flown to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, Lyons said. She was the only person in that vehicle.

Both Lyons and Keenan said they could not release any further information about those injured Saturday night.

A third car swerved to avoid the collision and ended up in a steep culvert on the side of the road. The driver of that car was not injured and drove away with help from several people who had come to look at the scene.

The collision happened about 5 p.m. A portion of Route 176 was closed while emergency crews assisted the injured and removed the damaged cars.

Prairie Grove police are leading the investigation into the collision. Assisting on the scene were departments from Wauconda, McHenry, Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox River Grove, Algonquin, Wonder Lake, and Woodstock.