Palatine H.S. Cross-Country Runner Injured in Crash; Driver Cited

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A member of the Palatine High School cross-country team was seriously injured while jogging with teammates in Palatine Thursday morning.

Ryan Kissane, 18, of Palatine, is recovering at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital following the crash that occurred at about 6:45 a.m. Thursday at Palatine and Rohlwing roads. He was listed in stable condition as of late Thursday morning.

“His injuries are no longer considered life-threatening,” according to a Palatine Police Department press release.

Kissane was hit by a 2000 Chevy Camaro at about 6:45 a.m. while crossing Palatine Road at the intersection of Rohlwing Road in Palatine while running with his fellow cross-country teammates, police said. The crash occurred when the Camaro turned left from southbound Rohlwing onto eastbound Palatine Road. 

The teen was knocked to the ground and suffered severe head trauma. He was initially taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge for treatment of life-threatening injuries, police said.

An update on the Palatine Cross-Country and Track Facebook page at about 9:30 a.m. indicated the runner was “doing well at the hospital” and had suffered a couple fractures and missing teeth but “nothing life-threatening.”

The driver in the crash, Frank Marcoux, of 291 N. Greenwood, was cited for failure to yield to a pedestrian in the crosswalk. He was not injured in the accident. Witnesses to the crash said the traffic signal at Rohlwing Road was green at the time of the incident.

The intersection of Palatine and Rohlwing roads was closed for several hours Thursday morning as police investigated the crash.

The accident is not the first time a suburban cross-country runner has been hit while training. In September 2011, a Lincoln-Way High School freshman was killed while running through a forest preserves in unincorporated Palos Township.

Patrick Mizawicki, 14, of New Lenox, had been participating in a cross-country practice at the time of the crash.

• Read more: Lincoln-Way Freshman Struck and Killed While Running in Forest Preserves