March 10, 2010
A woman is dead after the vehicle she was driving struck a pole head-on during extremely foggy conditions early Tuesday on the Northwest Side.
At 4:13 a.m. 21-year-old Samantha Sullivan was driving a 1997 Dodge Neon southbound on Canfield Avenue when she crossed over in the the northbound lanes and hit a light pole head-on on the east side of the road on the 6100 block of North Canfield Avenue, according to Jefferson Park District police Lt. John Lewison.
It was not known why she lost control of the car or whether the extremely dense fog in the area caused her to leave the road.
“You couldn't even see your hand in front of your face,’’ Lewison said of the foggy conditions.
A neighbor who heard the car smack the pole looked outside and saw her get out of the Neon and begin walking away, but couldn’t see which direction because the fog was so heavy, the lieutenant said. Sullivan was the only person in the car.
Police were notified and an ambulance was called but sent away because they couldn’t initially find anyone hurt. A short while later she was found -- not breathing -- sitting on the ground in a backyard on the 7800 block of West Glenlake Avenue between an air conditioning unit and a fence, according to Lewison.
She did not have any visible signs of injury, such as any bleeding, according to Lewison, who said ambulances rushed back to the scene and tried to resuscitate her and transported to her to Resurrection Medical Center.
Sullivan was pronounced dead at 5:22 a.m. at Resurrection Medical Center, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office, which listed her address on the 7500 block of West Howard Street.
Lewison said there was no indication in a police report that drugs, alcohol or speeding were factors. The Neon sustained front-end damage.
Sullivan, who was the mother of a 3-year-old who was not in the car at the time, was in town visiting relatives, according to Lewison.
An autopsy is scheduled for later Wednesday.
The police Major Accident Investigation Unit is investigating.