Emergency crews were left scrambling over the weekend to respond to multiple vehicle accidents caused by severe and unexpected icy road conditions. The National Weather Service issued a freezing rain advisory on the morning of Sunday, January 18th, and cautioned drivers to stay off the roads wherever possible.
However, with temperatures reaching their coldest point between 7 and 8 am, many drivers were already out on the roads at the time of the alert. Dangerous road conditions in Baltimore and the surrounding counties led to what police have called “way too many [accidents] to count,” and at least one fatality.
The worst incident took place on the eastbound lane of Route 40 near the border of Baltimore and Harford Counties. The Maryland State Highway Administration estimates that as many as 49 cars were involved in a pileup which left all lanes of traffic closed for hours as crews fought to clear the roads and divert traffic.
In Baltimore and Harford Counties, some emergency crews were left “paralyzed” to deal with the overwhelming amount of reported accidents. Emergency vehicles were slowed by the icy roads and had trouble reaching many injured or stranded drivers.
One such early morning accident in Harford County left one driver fatally injured and three other drivers taken to a local hospital for evaluation. Another weather related accident caused six passengers on a Maryland Transit bus to be injured after the bus slipped off the icy roads in the Milford Mill area.
These accidents illustrate just how severe, rapid and dangerous the deterioration of road conditions can be during periods of ice and freezing rain.
The safest thing to do in situations such as this is to simply stay off the roads, but when this is not a possibility, winter driving precautions can go a long way towards preventing an accident. See our previous tips on safe driving in the winter and stay up to date on the local weather forecast.
If you or a loved one are injured in an automobile, motorcycle or truck accident that was not your fault, contact The Yost Legal Group to handle your entire claim. You can trust the experienced car accident lawyers of The Yost Legal Group to examine the details of your case and determine the best course of action to achieve the justice you deserve.
Call us today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (967-8529) for a free, confidential and no-obligation consultation. If you were injured due to the negligence or recklessness of another driver, The Yost Legal Group will fight to get you the compensation and justice you deserve.
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