Drivers Urged To Clean Snow & Ice From Cars Before Hitting The Road

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- There are still dangerous elements left over from the storm that hit our region this week. But many of us may not realize what those dangers are.

Kai Jackson explains.

The snow on the road isn't the only problem for vehicles. That snow and ice on your roof can be just as dangerous.

Two rounds of snow and ice -- just days apart -- have left some Marylanders battle-weary. But experts say even when the snow has stopped falling, drivers can't let down their guard.

"If it happened differently, I could have swerved, I could have crashed. I'm just lucky that I'm OK," said driver Rachel Smith.

Look at the damage to Rachel Smith's Acura. She says it happened while she was driving on the Beltway.

"I was traveling on 695 when a sheet of ice flew off a tractor trailer. The size of it was about the size of my windshield. And it smashed the front of my windshield and the top of my roof," she said.

Smith said it was a frightening experience, but it is not uncommon. And she has to pay the bill.

AAA Mid-Atlantic says, for safety reasons, it's important that drivers remove snow and ice, especially from the roof of their vehicles before getting on the road.

"It's really a matter of common sense and common courtesy. Clean off the snow off your car," said Ragina Averella, AAA Mid-Atlantic.

There's no law in Maryland requiring drivers to clean their vehicles of snow and ice, and that presents a problem.

"Certainly, if it flies off and falls into the pathway of a vehicle behind you, you're endangering other motorists on the road," Averella said.

Driver Timothy Diven says he clears his vehicle "because I don't want snow coming off my car going down the expressway or something like that, hit somebody else's car behind me with ice or snow."

AAA also encourages drivers to keep an emergency kit in their vehicles in case they get stranded in cold weather.

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