Electrical malfunction in vehicle leads to hospitalization of seven teenagers, sheriff says

A single-vehicle car crash in Dunlap in which the vehicle suffered from an electrical issue has led to the hospitalization of seven teenagers with varying injuries.

Peoria County Sheriff Chris Watkins said that at 2:45 a.m. Monday deputies were called to the 11800 block of North Hickory Grove Road to respond to a crash. When they arrived, they found a vehicle with seven teenagers inside – five boys and two girls.

Each gave a similar story to deputies, in that they had been driving southbound on Hickory Grove when the vehicle's lights suddenly went out, both inside and outside the vehicle. With the power out, the vehicle drove off the road through an embankment before hitting a tree on the other side of the road. The vehicle had encountered this kind of electrical issue previously, the owner said.

Each of the five boys was hospitalized with minor injuries at OSF Healthcare Saint Francis Medical Center. As for the girls, one has moderate to severe lacerations in the arms and legs, while another has a possibly lacerated spleen, the sheriff said.