Driver hospitalized after van plunges into Round Lake

A man was hospitalized Thursday morning after driving his van into Round Lake.

Officers responded to a call of a van in the water in the 200 block of East Lake Shore Drive in the northern suburb about 7:40 a.m., according to Round Lake police.

They found a partially-sunken van with a 38-year-old Round Lake man in the driver’s seat, police said. An officer went in the water and found that the driver was conscious, but the van was slowly sinking.

The officer couldn’t get the man out of the van, but stayed with him until the Round Lake Fire Department arrived. Within several minutes, the front compartment of the van was completely submerged.

Fire department divers got the man out of the van and he was taken to Condell Hospital in Libertyville, police said. His condition was not immediately known.

Police said the man, who works as limousine driver in Chicago and had just completed an 18-hour shift, had fallen asleep. His last memory was waking up in his van after entering the water.

The officer who jumped in the water was checked for injuries and hypothermia at the scene, police said.

“I believe the quick coordinated response by police and fire saved this gentleman’s life,” Round Lake Police Chief George Filenko said in a statement. “I commend our officer for his immediate response with no hesitation entering the water in an attempt to render aid.”