Investigators are still trying to figure out what caused the crash that killed Richard and Arlene Klima. Police are still trying to figure out exactly where the couple was going when their vehicle crashed and then burst into flames.
The remnants of a shattered tree tell of the earlier Thursday morning crash that claimed the lives of two people.
Authorities say the suburban couple died when the Jeep they were in struck a tree, rolled over and caught fire.
"I'm just amazed at how they got where they are or how the people got, where the vehicle got where it apparently ended up," said neighbor Bren Golden.
Westmont police officers responded to a single-vehicle accident in the 500 block of West 59th Street in the front yard of Bob Tamos' house.
He had already left for work, but his wife was still home.
"The corner of the house is where I sleep on the first floor and it could have slammed into the house there," Tamos said.
Help arrived to find the Jeep Grand Cherokee engulfed in flames.
"They found the one body and it looked like they didn't think there was another one, until they turned the car over and saw the second body," said Lucille Golden.
Dead are 69-year-old Richard Klima and 71-year-old Arlene Klima of southwest suburban Darien.
Police are say their preliminary investigation indicates that he was driving when the Grand Cherokee traveling east on 59th when it left the roadway.
It's still unclear if weather or something else was a contributing factor in the crash.
"It had snow and so there was some snow on the roadway. As far as the cause of the accident, that's still under investigation," said Westmont Police Chief Thomas Mulhearn.
Autopsies are scheduled for Friday as the police investigation continues.
