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Maryland Deals With Aftermath Of Sunday's Freeze

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Right now, many are dealing with the aftermath of a flash freeze that paralyzed parts of Maryland Sunday morning.

Investigator Mike Hellgren has more on just how treacherous it got.

Body shops are very busy Monday. I-83 was shut down during the worst of the ice. That impacted Harford, Howard, Carroll and Baltimore counties, too---and proved deadly across the northeast.

A Jeep slid out of control down a hill. It was just one of many harrowing scenes across the northeast Sunday morning after a paralyzing flash freeze coated roads with a dangerous layer of ice. More than 200 crashes in Maryland and five deaths in the region were blamed on the slippery conditions, including one in Harford County.

Outside Philadelphia, three people died in accidents, including a massive 60-vehicle wreck. A tractor trailer jackknifed and trapped several SUVs underneath.

"All of us who were sitting here, so we have to wait several hours---but that's better than the alternative," said driver Raymond Tobey.

At another accident to the north, cars piled together like matchsticks.

"People were screaming `Get out of your car! Get out of the road!' and I turned around and another was coming," said driver Evan Brenner.

In Maryland, the biggest mass accidents were in Howard County in two different spots along Baltimore National Pike. You can see crash after crash lining the shoulder of Interstate 70. All of it led to a busy Monday morning at body shops.

"In the ice, the majority of the damage looks like this---left front end going off the side of the road, hitting a jersey wall," said Mike Machin, Yoon's Body Shop.

"Of course I feel bad for the people because it's just a hassle," said Terrence Yoon, Yoon's Body Shop.

Conditions were ripe for the icy mess as warmer rain fell, turning to ice as it came into contact with the colder ground---taxing first responders and fraying nerves of drivers who could do little more than watch the inevitable happen.

"I was trying to control my car and it was black ice, like completely black ice," said Brenner.

The person who died in Harford County was in the backseat of an SUV. Authorities say the driver lost control and slammed into a vehicle in the other lane.

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