The driver who survived a fiery I-90 crash near Hampshire on Sunday that killed the rest of his family, plus another child, has died of his injuries, Illinois State Police said Wednesday.
Thomas Dobosz, 32, had been airlifted to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood with severe injuries after a head-on collision around 2 a.m. Sunday. His wife Lauren Dobosz, 31, and their four children — Emma, 13, Lucas, 7, Nicholas, 6 and Ella, 5 — all died at the scene.
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Another 13-year-old girl who was riding with the Dobosz family also died in the crash, police said, as did the other driver, Jennifer Fernandez, 22, of Carpentersville, who was traveling the wrong way on the tollway when the collision occurred.
“We come with a heavy heart today with an update on Tom. Tom has gained his angel wings and is now with his amazing wife Lauren and precious children,” read a post in an online fundraiser for the family. The GoFundMe page had raised over $94,000 as of Wednesday afternoon.
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Thomas, of Rolling Meadows, was driving a Chevrolet van in the early hours of Sunday when a gray Acura TSX sedan, driven by Fernandez, struck them head-on.
The family was on their way to their cabin in Minnesota when the crash occurred, according to friends. State police said Wednesday that the investigation into the crash is ongoing.
Over 100 community members remembered the family at a vigil and balloon release Monday for their dedication to the Oriole Park Falcons cheerleading and football teams.
“We don’t come across families like them very often, the ones that are so dedicated and do so much,” Oriole Park Falcons secretary Sharon Swank said Monday.
“We have a saying here: ‘Once a Falcon, always a Falcon.’ And I think that means a little bit more now than it did before,” Falcons cheer director Ryan Cooper said during the balloon release.
