The Illinois State Police said on Thursday that the woman who drove her Jeep through an after-school center in Chatham, Ill., earlier this week could have experienced a medical episode before the crash, which killed three children and a teenager.
The driver, a 44-year-old Chatham resident, tested negative for alcohol and controlled substances in the aftermath, authorities said.
“Some evidence has been developed indicating the possibility of a medical emergency leading up to the crash,” Brendan F. Kelly, the director of the Illinois State Police, said at a news conference on Thursday. “However, the investigation of this information and other evidence has not yet concluded, and will continue until all leads and research have been exhausted.”
The crash occurred on Monday afternoon, when dozens of children were at the privately owned after-school center, Y.N.O.T. Outdoors. The car left the road, veered through an open field and into the building. Once inside, the car burst through another wall and finally stopped when it hit a ballpark fence. Mr. Kelly said that data from the car would be analyzed as part of the investigation.
The driver, who was not injured, was taken to a hospital and released. No charges have been filed, and the driver is not in custody. The authorities have said that the crash did not appear to be a “targeted attack.”
Killed in the crash were 7-year-old Alma Buhnerkempe, 7-year-old Kathryn Corley, 8-year-old Ainsley Johnson and 18-year-old Rylee Britton.
Since Monday, Chatham residents have gathered in shock and sorrow at memorials and candlelight vigils, wearing red — the school district’s color — to honor the victims.
Galen Johnson, Ainsley’s grandfather, wrote in a Facebook post that “words alone cannot express the pain” the family was feeling from the loss.
