Family of Lakemoor-area man injured in Route 120 crash near McHenry seeks donations

LAKEMOOR – The family of 26-year-old Drew Stout, the man injured after he crashed into an oncoming semitrailer, is asking for help as he remains in critical condition at the intensive care unit where he was flown after the crash.

Stout lost control of his vehicle and crossed a raised median about 11 a.m. Monday, police said. He was moving items from Lakemoor to a home in McHenry when he crashed. The couple had recently rented the home and had just received the keys on Sunday.

Stout and his fiancée, Ashli Saylor, are the parents of a 4-month-old daughter, and the couple is expecting another child. Stout and Saylor also are raising Saylor's three daughters, all younger than 8, from a previous marriage.

“He's everything to us,” Saylor said. “He's our rock. He was trying to do his best to get us what we needed.”

Stout is in a medically induced coma because doctors are concerned the swelling in his brain will worsen, Saylor said. He had surgery on one of his legs, which was broken in several places. A CT scan performed Tuesday morning showed the swelling had not gotten worse, Saylor said.

Doctors told the family they expect Stout to be in the ICU until at least Thursday, Saylor said.

“We just want him to come home and get better,” Saylor said. “He's strong. He wouldn't leave that set of girls. He wouldn't leave us. He loves us too much for him to give up.”

Stout's income supports the family, meaning the crash and his looming recovery will create a financial hardship. A friend created a GoFundMe.com account to raise money for the family. The account had raised more than $1,700 by Tuesday.

The McHenry Moose Lodge 690, 3535 N. Richmond Road, Johnsburg, also is collecting donations, as well as household items and diapers.

Police continue to investigate what caused the crash, Lakemoor Police Chief David Godlewski said. The initial investigation by the Major Crash Assistance Team of Lake County shows Stout was driving a 1999 Plymouth Neon east on Route 120 near North Avenue when he drove onto the raised median.

Stout overcorrected, ultimately going into a broad slide before colliding with the rear tandem axle on the driver's side of the semitrailer, Godlewski said.

Stout was ejected through either the passenger's side window or the windshield, and was found lying on the pavement in the westbound lane, Godlewski said.

[ PHOTOS: Police investigate Route 120 crash near Lakemoor, McHenry ]

“It was horrific,” Godlewski said. “The car literally exploded. There was debris all over, in the eastbound lane, the westbound lane, the shoulder.”

The McHenry Township Fire Protection District cared for Stout before he was flown by Flight for Life to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville. The 31-year-old Mundelein man driving the semi refused treatment, but was taken to Centegra Hospital – McHenry to test for drugs or alcohol because he holds a commercial driver's license, Godlewski said.

Police do not suspect drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash. They also suspect Stout might not have been wearing his seat belt.

“It's doubtful, but we don't know for sure,” Godlewski said.

“There was a lot of information to gather.”