Thursday morning brought an unsettling scene to one of Chicago’s Northwest Side neighborhoods when a car crashed directly into a local cafe, leaving behind a trail of structural damage and plenty of unanswered questions. The crash took place at City News Cafe, a neighborhood staple sitting in the 4000 block of North Cicero Avenue in Portage Park. As of early morning, police had not yet released details about what time the crash occurred or what chain of events led up to it.
Aerial footage captured by SkyCam 9 around 6:50 a.m. showed officers walking through the wreckage of the badly damaged cafe. A black car, also heavily damaged, was visible near the building. The images painted a grim picture of a morning that likely started very differently for everyone involved.
What remains unknown is perhaps just as striking as what is known. Authorities have not confirmed whether anyone was injured in the crash, and no information has been released about the driver or any passengers. The cause of the crash has not been determined, leaving neighbors and morning commuters to piece together what they could from the chaotic scene unfolding around them…