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A frightening incident unfolded on Friday afternoon in Chicago when a woman narrowly escaped serious harm after a piece of concrete plunged from an overpass onto her car’s windshield. This unnerving event occurred on Interstate 55 near Pulaski.
The driver, who sustained several cuts to her face, neck, and hands, was quickly taken to the hospital. Her family describes her as fortunate to have survived and notes that she is shaken by the ordeal.
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The family of 53-year-old Oksana Kovalchuk provided ABC7 with photos showcasing the extent of the damage.
According to her relatives, a massive two-foot concrete slab shattered her Lexus SUV’s windshield, breaking into three separate pieces upon impact.
The accident occurred as Kovalchuk was heading north on I-55, shortly after midday.
Illinois State Police confirmed the debris came from the Pulaski overpass, and it fell and hit the vehicle.
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Kovalchuk’s daughter, Viktoriya Petriv, says it missed her mother’s head by a couple of inches.
“She had pieces of glass in her hair, pieces of glass in her ears, in her mouth, in her nose, in her back, everywhere all over her,” Petriv said. “It’s just horrifying that it could happen, that it happened to us. It could happen to anyone. It could happen again tonight, tomorrow to someone.”
Kovalchuk, who lives in Justice, was taken to St. Anthony Hospital after relatives say another driver saw what happened, pulled over, and called 911.
State police said one lane of I-55 traffic was blocked for about a half hour.
The family is speaking out as a warning to others and is seeking answers as to how this could have happened.
ABC7 has left a message for IDOT for more information about the incident.
