N.S. woman sounds alarm about clearing snow off vehicles after ‘terrifying’ incident

A chunk of ice crashed into a Nova Scotia driver’s car windshield.

A Nova Scotia woman says she’s thankful she wasn’t hurt after a large piece of ice flew off another vehicle and into hers on Highway 102 in Halifax last week.

Caitlin Juntermanns says a “roof-sized piece of ice” from the vehicle in front of her flew up and impaled her windshield.

“I didn’t know what to do,” she tells CTV News. “I was covered in glass, head to toe. I think that was probably the scariest part of it all – shaking myself off like a dog when I got out of my car.”

It was “terrifying, for sure,” she says.

Juntermanns has been without her car for just over a week now and is using a rental vehicle in the meantime. She’s engaged her insurance company and is hoping costs will be covered.

She’s thankful a woman who was travelling behind her followed the vehicle that the ice came from and shared the licence plate information with her to report to police.

“It’s just negligence,” she says. “Just complete negligence, in my opinion.”

That’s why she’s thankful her daughter wasn’t in the passenger seat, where she usually is.

“It was a big rectangle. The chunks that made it inside of my car were at least 2 to 3 inches thick. (I’m) happy I didn’t have a passenger because we would have been on the way to the hospital,” she says.

However, Juntermanns isn’t alone.

Last week, New Brunswick RCMP reported a passenger suffered minor injuries after a piece of ice from an oncoming tractor-trailer smashed into a vehicle’s windshield in the southeastern part of the province.

That incident happened on Feb. 19 in Woodside, N.B. Police posted a photo of the damage on social media along with a warning to clear ice and snow from vehicles.

Tickets issued

In Nova Scotia, the RCMP says 26 summary offence tickets have been issued to motorists in the Halifax Regional Municipality since Nov. 1, 2024, for driving with an obstructed view. That isn’t exclusive to snow or ice.

A summary offence ticket can be issued when windows or windshields are obstructed, which can lead to a $180 fine, RCMP says.

Driving with an unsecured load, which could include snow or ice, can cost drivers $237.50 for a first offence.

Nova Scotia RCMP Cpl. Guillaume Tremblay says it’s hazardous “not only for occupants of the vehicle” if snow or ice could slide onto your windshield, “but it’s also very dangerous for other motorists out there.”

“The snow and ice could come flying off at any time while you’re driving at a certain speed, especially on the highways,” Tremblay says. “We’re talking about, potentially, life-threatening injuries for other motorists.”

“It’s frustrating for the public, it’s frustrating for officers. More so, it’s a danger to life, for individuals, motorists that are out there, whether you’re a pedestrian on the sidewalk, whether you’re another motorist that’s driving them behind the vehicle.”

For Juntermanns, she’s going to be extra alert – and wants others to ensure their vehicles are free from snow and ice.

“I will forever be the ice police from now on,” she says. “If I have to take my scraper and go into parking lots, I will.”

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