JOLIET, Ill. — A 33-year-old man is in critical condition after the SUV he was driving struck the Jefferson Street Bridge in Joliet on Saturday afternoon and landed in the Des Plaines River, where officers and firefighters pulled off a water rescue as police closed the bridge and the street around it, Joliet police said.
Police said officers responded to the bridge just before 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, 2026, after receiving a report that a car had hit the bridge and gone into the river. The bridge carries West Jefferson Street across the Des Plaines River in downtown Joliet, in Will County, Illinois.
A life preserver, then firefighters in the water
Officers and Joliet fire paramedics found the man in the water near the southwest side of the bridge, police said. He was tossed a life preserver, and officers held onto him until fire department personnel entered the water and brought him to safety. Television video from the scene later showed investigators, including crews in a boat, searching the water as the investigation continued.
Source: Focal News — Joliet Police Shut Down Jefferson Street Bridge for Crash Investigation
The man was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet in critical condition, police said. His name has not been released, and no update on his condition had been published by Sunday morning.
A preliminary investigation found the man was driving a Toyota 4Runner eastbound on West Jefferson Street at a high rate of speed, police said. Witnesses told investigators the driver — the SUV's sole occupant — lost control of the vehicle before the crash.
Bridge shut, and two investigations running side by side
Police announced the closure of Jefferson Street and the bridge at about 4:50 p.m., and both remained shut as of 6 p.m. while the Joliet Police Department Traffic Unit reconstructs the crash. At the same time, Illinois Department of Transportation officials are inspecting the bridge itself for damage from the impact, police said.
Source: Focal News — Joliet Police Shut Down Jefferson Street Bridge for Crash Investigation
That double track — a crash reconstruction on the roadway and a structural inspection of the bridge — is why police could not say when the crossing will reopen. A movable lift bridge that has taken a vehicle impact has to be checked not only where the vehicle struck it, but for the alignment and machinery that let the span rise for river traffic.
What is solid
- A Toyota 4Runner driven eastbound on West Jefferson Street struck the Jefferson Street Bridge just before 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, and landed in the Des Plaines River — Joliet police, via CBS Chicago.
- The 33-year-old driver, the SUV's sole occupant, was rescued from the water near the bridge's southwest side and taken to St. Joseph Medical Center in critical condition.
- The bridge and Jefferson Street were closed while the police Traffic Unit reconstructs the crash and IDOT inspects the bridge for damage; no reopening time was given.
What is only claimed
- Why the driver lost control is not established: police describe a high rate of speed based on a preliminary investigation and witness accounts, but the reconstruction is unfinished and no cause, citation or impairment finding has been announced.
The crossing, and the river below it
The Jefferson Street Bridge is one of the movable bridges that carry downtown Joliet streets over the Des Plaines River, the waterway that runs through the city on its way to the Illinois River and, ultimately, the Mississippi. Joliet sits at the junction of Interstates 55 and 80 and is one of the Chicago region's busiest freight and logistics hubs, so even a city-street bridge closure pushes traffic onto a small number of alternative river crossings downtown.
What happens next
Two findings will decide what follows: the IDOT inspection, which determines whether and when the bridge can safely reopen, and the Traffic Unit's reconstruction, which will establish how the SUV came to strike the bridge. Police are asking anyone with video or information about the crash to contact the Joliet Police Traffic Unit at 815-724-3010. Awaaz Punjab will update this story when the bridge reopens or the driver's condition changes.