Rockford woman killed in crash near northwest suburban Union

A 27-year-old Rockford woman was killed in a crash Wednesday evening in an unincorporated area of McHenry County near Union.

Sarah E. Wells was driving a 2005 Honda Civic west about 9:40 p.m. in the 17000 block of U.S. Route 176 when she veered into oncoming traffic and collided with a 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by a 24-year-old Marengo man, the McHenry County Sheriff’s and Coroner’s offices said.

Wells was pronounced dead at the scene and the man was taken Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where he remained in critical condition Thursday, the sheriff’s office said.

An autopsy Friday found Wells died of blunt force trauma to the head, neck, chest, abdomen and pelvis, the coroner’s office said.

Both drivers were wearing seat belts, authorities said. Cell phone use was suspected as a contributing factor to the crash, which was still under investigation.