What was Chris Street’s cause of death? Documentary gets air date
A documentary about Chris Street is due to premiere this week – what was his cause of death, and where is girlfriend Kim Vinton now?
Street was an American college basketball player. He played for the Iowa Hawkeyes from 1990 to 1993 – the year he died.
His passing cut short a promising career as a basketball player; many thought he would go on to play for the NBA. As a freshman, he played 28 games and averaged 5.0 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
In his final game, he scored 14 points and extended his record of made free throws to 34. His team, however, lost the game.
What was Chris Street’s cause of death, and when did he die?
On January 19, 1993 – almost exactly 30 years ago – Chris Street died when the car he was driving collided with a snowplow.
His girlfriend, Kim Vinton, was also in the car. While the collision caused Chris Street’s death, however, Vinton survived.
She went to University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics for treatment for a punctured lung, separated shoulder and broken ribs.
His funeral took place three days later, on January 22, 1993. There is a memorial to him in the Iowa locker room at Carver Hawkeye Arena, featuring a photograph and short bio, according to the Quad-City Times.
Where is he buried?
The location of Chris Street’s grave is the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery, part of Indianola City Cemetery in Warren County, Iowa. The monument above his grave reads: “Son, Brother, Grandson, Friend, Cousin, Nephew, Hero.”
Born February 2, 1972, he was just a few days shy of his 21st birthday when he died.
His listed height and weight were 6ft 8in (2.03m) and 220lb (100kg) respectively. He played as a power forward for the Hawkeyes from 1990 to 1993, but also excelled in baseball and football while at Indianola high school.
The Find A Grave website displays digital flowers and candles people have left for him. The most recent is from January 16, 2023.
Where is Chris Street’s former girlfriend Kim Vinton now?
Age 20 at the time of Street’s death, Kimberly Vinton fortunately survived the crash, and told the Des Moines Register in 2018 that she “still thinks about Chris” – her “first love” – every day.
They had been together since their sophomore year at Indianola High School. On the night of the accident, Street was driving Vinton to a night class. He had just finished having dinner with his teammates at the Highlander Supper Club.
“Trying to gain some identity” of her own was among the challenges she says she faced, she says. She stayed in Iowa after graduation, and even went to grad school there.
“People still remembered me as … the girl that was in the accident. So I did move away for a summer,” she says. Moving to Des Moines after graduate school and starting to work in “the real world” helped her move away from being “Chris’s girlfriend,” and towards being Kimberly Vinton. She has since married and had children.
Where to watch new Chris Street documentary on TV
B1G Story: Chris Street will premiere on Wednesday, January 18, 2023 at 11pm ET on Big Ten Network.
Per its trailer, it will also be available to watch anywhere on Fox Sports.
Immediately before it, at 9pm, the same network will air Iowa’s home game against Northwestern. That’s the same school the Hawkeyes were supposed to play on January 20, 1993, when the game was postponed as a result of Street’s death.
“Cannot wait to watch this story,” says one Twitter user. They were a 12-year-old ball boy for the Iowa Hoops team that season, and reportedly “got to know Chris and the team.” It looks like it will run for an hour.
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