Car Strikes Pole on River Road, Driver in Critical Condition

A McHenry man is in critical condition after his Toyota Scion TC Coupe struck a utility pole early Friday morning near River Road and Drucker Lane, southeast of McHenry.

McHenry County Sheriff Keith Nygren said at 12:34 a.m. on Sept. 28, police and rescue workers responded to the scene of a single-car crash that occured at the intersection in unincorporated Nunda Township.

Preliminary investigation indicated that Justin E. Morningstar, 26, of 4910 Willow Ln., McHenry, was driving a 2006 Toyota Scion TC coupe southbound, within the 600 block of River Road, when his car left the east side of the roadway, struck a utility pole and came to rest upside down.

Morningstar, the driver and sole occupant of the Scion, was ejected from the vehicle, Nygren said.

Morningstar was subsequently transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville, where he was listed in critical condition on Friday. No airbags deployed within the vehicle, and Morningstar was not wearing his safety belt.

Speed and alcohol are believed to have played a role in the traffic crash, Nygren said. Toxicology results are pending. The accident is under investigation by the McHenry County Sheriff's Office.

The McHenry Township Fire Protection District, McHenry Police Department, Island Lake Police Department, and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded to the crash.