MAINE, Maine — With heavy snow slated to hit Maine this week, officials are reminding drivers to clear snow and ice off of their cars.
Bangor-area resident Jake King did not expect to get into an accident last week after freezing rain and snow caught most of the state by surprise.
"On the highway going southbound in Bangor, had a car pass me on the left hand side," King said. "As they hit a bump, the entire front half of their roof was covered in ice."
A big chunk hit King's windshield, shattering it. Luckily, he was unscathed, but said he was shocked by the damage.
"I thought it was going to be, you know, kind of like a snow ball hits your windshield and kinda poofs, right? Didn't expect my whole windshield to almost implode," he said.
This time around, King is sharing his experience as a warning of the potential dangers an uncleared roof can do to other drivers.
Maine drivers are required by law to remove snow and ice from their vehicles before hitting the road.
"We get calls all the time of ice blowing off vehicles of other cars, breaking windshields, causing crashes because windshields are broken," Maine State Police Officer Seth Allen said. "They can be stopped or fined if their car is causing a hazard in that manner."
If a driver does end up with a smashed windshield, employees at Moody's Collision Center in South Portland said repairs could cost $500 to $1,000 or more.
"For anything that we're getting right now that's not really planned for, we're telling people thirty to sixty days before you get your vehicle back," assistant manager Ryan Gorman said.
King and others said it's all the more reason for drivers to obey the law and make the effort to clear their vehicles of snow and ice.
"I think it's important to kind of show, like, 'Hey, your actions have consequences,'" King said.