Waukegan police and firefighter/paramedics responded about 12:30 p.m. Saturday October 21, 2017 to Toluca’s Restaurant, 1419 Washington Street. Nine people were injured from the crash during the Saturday lunch hour at the restaurant, known as one of the best Mexican restaurants in Waukegan.
Ambulances with firefighter/paramedics from Beach Park, Gurnee, Grayslake, Gurnee, Libertyville, Mundelein, North Chicago, Pleasant Prairie responded to assist Waukegan firefighter/paramedics with the mass casualty incident. A MABAS Division 4 Box Alarm to the Second Level was activated to bring extra help for injured people.
Seven people inside the restaurant were transported to hospitals. Two adults and a young child were listed in critical condition. Two other adults and two children suffered injuries described as non-critical, according to police.
Grayslake firefighters also responded with a ladder truck, and Lake Villa and Winthrop firefighter/paramedics covered the rest of Waukegan by standing by in Waukegan fire stations.
Police say a 2015 Chevrolet Traverse, driven by an elderly Waukegan resident, Constella Turner, backed into the front of Toluca’s Restaurant. Police did not report Turner’s specific age.
In a security video, it appears that the crashed vehicle had been parked parallel at the curb across the street before it was backed into the restaurant.
Turner and her passenger — a young child relative — were transported to a local hospital with injuries initially believed to be non-life-threatening.
Turner was issued citations for improper backing and reckless driving, according to Waukegan police. She is scheduled to appear in court November 27, 2017.
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