Man Driving Scooter Killed in Crash
Details are limited as the accident is currently under investigation.
A 50-year-old Winnetka man died after being struck by an automobile near the intersection of Crawford Avenue and Dempster Street on Tuesday.
Thomas W. Hensel was riding his scooter southbound on Crawford Avenue when a vehicle travelling northbound struck him, police said.
Hensel was later transported to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston where he was pronounced dead at 4:26 p.m.
Lisa Silverman said she saw the accident first hand on Tuesday. Silverman said she saw the body "fly, rotating high up in the air, almost suspended for a moment and hit the ground right in front of me.
"I'm still shaken up," she said. "The driver and passenger of the car are so young ... I can't imagine what was going through their heads when this all happened."
Police said they are unable to release the names of the other drivers at this time.
The North Regional Major Crash Assistance Team, or MCAT, was also at the scene. MCAT assists departments with investigations of fatal or severe motor accidents and serves the majority of the North Shore.
In April, a 20-year-old Glenview man died after carjacking and kidnapping the driver. In that incident, the suspect ultimately crashed his vehicle in the 5900 block of Lincoln Avenue near the Skokie-Morton Grove border. Also in April, a man died after a head on crash near the intersection of Golf and Harms Road.
No other information is available at this time. Once more information comes in, Skokie Patch will update.
Tom Larsen
10:26 am on Thursday, November 3, 2011
This is tragedy ... there should have been ... "No left turn signals / signs there"
.... because it was almost impossible to see the oncomming traffic with the left turn lanes closed. Shame on whomever set this up.
Katherine Hensel
4:17 pm on Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Ms. Silverman, I do not believe that you were interviewed as a witness by the Skokie police. I urge you to come forward and provide your account to the Skokie police department. I would also be interested in hearing your account of the accident. Mr. Larsen, I do not know if you were a witness to the accident but I would be most interested in learning your concerns relating to safety issues at the intersection.
I am the sister of Thomas Wilson Hensel and I will leave my contact information with the Editors of the Skokie Patch. Sincerely, Katherine Hensel
jerrold kamensky
3:56 pm on Thursday, December 1, 2011
Any persons who have information regarding this accident or the manner in which the intersection at Dempster and Crawford was being controlled during construction please contact me at JKamensky@KCRLawfirm.com. We are attempting to determine whether or not the manner in which the roadway was being managed during construction, or any other factors, contributed to the happening of the accident that has taken the life of Thomas Hensel. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated by the family of Mr. Hensel.