Plainfield Woman Undergoes Surgery Following Crash

Update/11:20 p.m. Monday:

Members of Tamara Watkins' family sent these messages to Patch for publication --

"I would like to extend my gratitude and thanks to all the people of Plainfield for their prayers and support to my sister Tamara Watkins and her family during this very difficult time. May God bless each and every one of you! Love from her sister in Belgium"

"Please let the people know in Plainfield that Tamara's family in Canada truly appreciate all their prayers and support for the Watkins Family. May God Bless them all! The Cromwells"

"Thank you to all the people of Plainsfield for their prayers and support to my sister Tamara Walkins and her family in the wake her accident. God bless you all from Tamara's family in Canada."

Update/2 p.m. Monday:

Tamara Watkins, who suffered severe head injuries in a Sunday morning accident, has undergone surgery and is showing a "very slight" improvement, a family friend said Monday afternoon.

"She is fighting very strongly," said the friend, who asked that his name not be published. "They say the first 48 hours are very crucial, and she's made it through the first 24. She's showing very, very slight progress."

Her two passengers -- her 17-year-old son and his 17-year-old girlfriend -- have both been released from the hospital, the friend said.

He also said the family has been told that alcohol "played a role" in the crash, in which 25-year-old Amber Glasgow allegedly drove through a red light and collided with Watkins' SUV.

Update/10:45 a.m. Monday:

The Plainfield woman who was critically injured in a violent two-car accident Sunday remained hospitalized Monday as did the woman who is believed to have caused it, according to an Illinois State Police spokesman.

Tamara Watkins, 40, is being treated at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood.

The names and medical statuses of Watkins' 17-year-old son and a 17-year-female passenger identified as the teen's girlfriend were not released by Master Sgt. Martez Malone. The son had been transported to Edward Plainfield Medical Center and the girl to Rush-Copley Medical Center in Aurora.

While no tickets have been issued or arrests made, the suspect in the crash is Amber Glasgow, 25, of Matteson. She is being treated at Rush-Copley.

Malone said the investigation is ongoing and that tests are being done to deterimine if alcohol was involved.

This story was posted at about 1:30 p.m. Sunday:

A woman is in "extremely critical condition" Sunday following a collision in which her vehicle was struck by a car that allegedly went through a red light at 127th Street and U.S. 30, police said.

The 40-year-old vicitim's identity has not been released, but Illinois State Police Sgt. Dustin Geier said her extensive injuries required that she be transported from Rush-Copley Medical Center in Aurora to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood.

The collision occurred at about 7:30 a.m., Deputy Chief Jon Stratton said.

Initial reports indicate that a Matteson woman in her mid-20s was driving on U.S. 30 when she reportedly drove through a red light and struck the passenger door of an SUV that was going through a green light on 127th Street, Geier said.

The force of the impact pushed the SUV into a pole. Both drivers had to be extricated from their vehicles, Stratton said.

There were two passengers is the SUV -- the driver's 17-year-old son and his 17-year-old girlfriend, both of Plainfield, he said. The male was transported to Edward Plainfield Medical Center, where he was listed in good condition. The female was taken to Rush-Copley, where she was in fair condition, Stratton said.

The woman who allegedly caused the accident was taken to Edward Hospital in Naperville, where she was listed in fair condition, he said.

The accident remains under investigation and no citations had been issued as of Sunday afternoon, Geier said.