A 79-year-old man died Tuesday morning after his car slammed into the garage of a home on Chicago's Near West Side, according to police. The crash happened around 6 a.m. in the 2400 block of West Lexington Street in the Tri-Taylor neighborhood, where the driver was traveling north before striking the residential garage.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to WGN-TV. Police said there were no other reported injuries from the crash. His identity has not been released, and the outlet's report does not specify who he was beyond his age.
What caused the driver to leave the roadway and strike the garage remains unclear, and authorities are still investigating. No further details about the crash sequence, the vehicle involved, or the extent of damage to the garage have been released.
A Grim Echo From Last Year
Tuesday's crash isn't the first time a 79-year-old man has died in a Near West Side traffic incident. In May 2025, a 79-year-old man was pronounced dead after a black sedan reportedly disregarded a traffic signal and struck a white sedan in the 2400 block of West Jackson Boulevard in the nearby United Center neighborhood, as reported by the Chicago Tribune.
In that earlier case, the driver of the black sedan fled the scene on foot, the Tribune reported. A 62-year-old woman riding as a passenger in the white sedan was also injured and taken to Stroger Hospital. The two crashes occurred roughly a mile and a half apart and involved no other connection beyond the victims' shared age and the Near West Side setting.
Investigation Continues
Police have not said whether medical issues, mechanical failure, or road conditions played any role in Tuesday's crash on West Lexington Street. For now, the cause remains unclear as authorities continue looking into exactly what happened in the early-morning hours before the car struck the garage.
