Motorcyclist killed in crash into house in northwest Indiana

A 43-year-old motorcyclist was killed in a crash with a tree and a house early Saturday in northwest Indiana.

Jeramy McWhirter crashed his motorcycle in the 5200 block of Lark Avenue in Portage at 3:43 a.m., according to a report from the Portage police department.

McWhirter, of Merrillville, was partially ejected from the motorcycle and taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was pronounced dead at 10:35 a.m., according to the medical examiner’s office.

Police said it appears the motorcycle skidded up a driveway before striking a tree and then a house. There were about 68 feet of skids marks leading to the curb in front of the home.

Witnesses heard the motorcycle’s engine revving, then the squeal of brakes and the crash. Neither of the witnesses saw the crash.

According to the report, the motorcycle was traveling at an unsafe speed at the time of the crash.