Salt truck slips on ice, plunges into Lake Michigan near Chicago Avenue

Two city workers escaped a sinking salt truck Wednesday morning after losing control of the vehicle and sliding backward into Lake Michigan.

The Park District truck was traveling on the lakefront trail about 7:20 a.m. when it fell into the water near Chicago Avenue, Chicago Fire Dept. Deputy District Chief Jason Lach said in a news conference.

“They hit a slick spot of ice and the vehicle lost control, sliding into the water,” Lach said.

The occupants escaped and crawled to safety before the truck was submerged, he said.

One man, 46, was treated for a busted lip at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago police said. The other man, 45, refused medical treatment.

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A video posted by NBC5 shows a salt truck traveling slowly on the trail and pivoting sideways before sliding backward into the lake.

The salt truck was one of four or five Park District salt trucks assigned to the lakefront that morning, Lach said. The crew was headed to salt the path between Grand and Fullerton avenues.

Lach warned lakefront patrons of the dangers of black ice — especially due to recent high water levels and freezing temperatures.

“It might not look like it’s dangerous, but it could still be a sheet of glass, where anyone could slide ... just like this vehicle did,” Lach said.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) said in a tweet that he was glad both workers are safe.

“It looks like the Park District will be down one salt truck for a while: it’s currently submerged in the Lake,” he wrote.

Crews closed down several lanes of Lake Shore Drive to maneuver a crane to pull the truck from the lake about 1:30 p.m.

Light snow blanketed the Chicago area Wednesday morning and temperatures measured about 17 degrees, with a windchill of 5 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times

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Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times

Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times