Man killed trying to help ducks cross highway

A suburban Chicago man was killed while trying to help a family of ducklings cross Interstate 294, near Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

Illinois State Police officials say 38-year-old Edward Gardner was struck by a limousine while trying to help the birds. The Naperville man was hit after he pulled over and got out of his car near Schiller Park when he saw the ducks on the tollway Monday.
Gardner was traveling with a female companion when they spotted the ducks and he got out to try to help them. It was not clear whether the woman was also trying to help the ducks or remained inside the vehicle.
The Cook County medical examiner's office says Gardner was pronounced dead about four hours later at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge.
State police say no citations were issued to the driver of the limousine. "It was just a freak accident," state police Sgt. Nick Hasan told the Chicago Sun Times.