Wrong-Way Driver on Michigan Avenue Strikes Pedestrians

Two people were injured Friday evening when they were struck by a vehicle driving the wrong way down Michigan Avenue.

The incident happened just after 5 p.m. when an 80-year-old female driver in a red car was southbound in the northbound lanes of North Michigan Avenue near East Lake Street.

"She hit the front of my car, which pushed me into [another] car," said a woman named Karen, who declined to give her last name.  "She backed up, going the wrong way, and hit two pedestrians."

The car ended up on the sidewalk in front of Sweetwater Bar and Grill, at 225 N. Michigan Ave.

One witness said she briefly felt scared because it seemed like the car was out of control.

"It was horrible.  There were two people in the street," said witness Carol Abernathy.  "The people in the intersection with us were trying to back away from the street because we didn't know where the car was going to go."

The two pedestrians were taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where one was listed in serious condition and the other was listed in good condition.

Police News Affairs Officer Daniel O'Brien said the pedestrians were 35 and 31 years old.

The driver of the red vehicle wasn't injured and was able to talk to police but was later taken to the hospital.

 

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