Flying Ice Proving Dangerous for Drivers

By Dave Jordan, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Ice on the top of passing vehicles is proving to be just as dangerous as ice on the roads. EMSA has treated several drivers injured by jagged edges of ice.

It's one of those issues that you don't even think about until it happens to you. It certainly hits home at NEWS 9 and for a Tuttle couple.

Pictures of the smashed windshield tell the story and Rebecca Jones had a front-row seat.

"I remember feeling something hit my face and then hit my head. I didn't know what it was. I was picking glass out of my eyelashes," said Rebecca Jones.

Her boyfriend was behind the wheel. He barely had time to react to the sheet of flying frozen water.

"It was a pretty good impact. It crushed the roof of the vehicle down and it went through the windshield," said Albert Pender.

It's an issue facing many drivers, judging by the packed parking lot outside of Glass Masters. Mechanics repaired more than 100 windshields in just two days.

"Most of our customers have been people who have come in who have had ice fly off the cars in front of them and then it hits their windshield and break it," said Emily Ellison with Glass Masters.

One of NEWS 9's vehicles was also caught in the path of flying ice that had been on the roof of a passing car.

Many cars are still out on the road caked in ice and snow, which makes this all the more upsetting for Albert Pender.

"All this person had to do was take five minutes and knock the ice off the top of the vehicle," Pender said.

Right now, there is no state law requiring drivers to remove ice from the roof of their cars. That means if you're hit by ice from a passing vehicle, you are responsible for the repairs.

A nurse on the scene treated Rebecca Jones before she was taken to a local hospital by EMSA. She's hoping to meet the nurse and thank her.