Driver critical after speeding pickup crashes into Des Plaines River in Riverside

A man was critically injured after driving a pickup truck into the Des Plaines River Thursday in west suburban Riverside.

The 2003 Chevrolet pickup was speeding westbound on Riverside Road at Olmsted Road about 6:35 p.m. when it left the road, hit a tree and continued across a residential property, through a park and into the river, according to a statement from Riverside police.

First responders found the truck submerged and pulled the driver out, police said. The 24-year-old Countryside man was taken to MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn in critical condition.

“I am extremely thankful that there was no adults or children walking in this area at the time, or this could have been a further tragedy,” Riverside Police Chief Tom Weitzel said in the statement.

Fire officials searched the river in a boat but did not find anyone else in the water, police said. Detectives have been unable to question the driver, who remains in the intensive care unit.

The crash remains under investigation by Riverside police and the West Suburban Major Crimes Task Force’s Major Crash Unit.