By Dermot Connolly

Two major car crashes occurred last week on Pulaski Road, including one that split a vehicle in half.

Police said a 50-year-old man driving south on Pulaski at about 4:44 a.m. June 23 was critically injured when his Toyota SUV was struck from behind at the 59th Street intersection by a Ford Mustang GT driven at a high rate of speed by a 25-year-old man.

The driver of the SUV was transported in critical condition to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. Although the Mustang was split in two and ended up in the parking lot of the 7-Eleven on the corner, the driver was able to run away from the scene full of scattered debris. However, he was apprehended a few blocks away and taken to a hospital with unknown injuries.

Charges were still pending against him last weekend.

Two days before that, at about 8 p.m. on June 21, four people were injured, including a 22-year-old pedestrian, in a one-car crash at the northwest corner of 69th Street and Pulaski Road. In that case, fire department officials said the injuries occurred when a car heading south at a high rate of speed crashed into a light pole and a mailbox in front of Hoyne Savings Bank at 6958 S. Pulaski.

According to police, the 52-year-old man driving lost control of the vehicle and a 22-year-old man who had just gotten off a bus was injured in the crash.

The pedestrian who was transported to Advocate Christ Medical Center in serious to critical condition was known by neighbors as a “bucket boy,” who regularly came to the intersection to make money by drumming on buckets. His injuries were not life-threatening, according to fire department officials.

According to police and fire officials, at least five people were in the crashed car.

Three of them were injured and taken to local hospitals for treatment. The driver was reportedly in good condition, with a second person listed in serious to critical condition, and the third in fair to serious condition. Two other passengers in the vehicle refused treatment.

Police said the driver received citations for driving without insurance and failure to prove vehicle registration. But other charges may be pending.