Pickup truck vs. horse: Animal dead, driver seriously injured in rural Kane County

PLATO TOWNSHIP – A pickup truck struck a horse in the road, killed the horse and left the driver seriously injured early Thursday morning, the Kane County Sheriff’s Office announced in a news release.

Kane County deputies came upon a dead horse in the road on Route 47 near Rohrsen Road in Plato Township at 12:40 a.m., and found a Dodge Ram pickup truck off the roadway. It appeared that the pickup hit the horse and left the roadway after the impact, the release stated.

The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, a Hampshire man, 39, was transported by helicopter to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge with serious injuries, the release stated.

Deputies spoke with the horse’s owner, who was actively out searching for his horse. The owner felt that the horse was suffering from a medical issue and had broken out of its stable prior to the crash, the release stated.

The Kane County Drone Team, Pingree Grove Fire/EMS, Illinois Department of Transportation, the Kane County Office of Emergency Management and LifeNet assisted the Sheriff’s Office.

The investigation is ongoing and no tickets have been issued.