INWOOD, W.Va. — New Year’s Day morning saw a snow squall move in early and with temps still below freezing, icy conditions on the roadways caused headaches for drivers and first responders alike.
Icy conditions caused by inclement weather likely contributed to a crash called in around 8:35 Thursday morning on I-81 northbound.
The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office tells The Panhandle News Network they responded to a two vehicle crash northbound just before the 5 mile marker.
A Nissan Rogue, driven by Liko Williams of Winchester, Virginia, rear ended a semi-truck that was stopped in traffic due to unrelated traffic accidents on the interstate.
Mr. Williams sustained injuries and was transported by medical helicopter to INOVA Fairfax Hospital for treatment. Mr. Williams’ family has been notified but there was no update on his condition.
The semi-truck was driven by Ricardo Morales Rojas of Alamo, Texas. The crash remains under investigation by Sergeant Ennis with the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Team.
This accident followed a morning of chaos on the roads as Assistant Chief of the Baker Heights Fire Department Adam Mauck said following the 4:45 snow squall, crews were first called out to a two car accident at the 12 mile marker. They were then called out to an accident at the 3 mile marker.
That was when a car “flying down the road come over the hill and spun out almost striking the Squad. A mutual aid company arrived next. Their officer just about got wiped out by another car going way too fast. We cleared that scene to go to an overturned truck at the 7.5 mm. We were on scene less than 10 minutes. I was talking to one of the other guys when were heard the Squad take a hit. The guys were checking on the occupants of that vehicle while I walked around to the other side from the front to check the damage. I hadn’t been around the side for 20 seconds when a car was slowing down as they approached (what you should do), when the car behind them jammed their breaks and lost control. Luckily I was able to get out of the way as they struck the front of the Squad.”
In a social media post, Mauck says it marked the 3rd piece of fire apparatus in Berkeley County that has been placed out of service in less than a month because what he characterized as “carelessness of other drivers.”
He says first responders have been ‘extremely lucky’ that none have been injured or killed in the incident. have been extremely lucky that none of the firefighters have been injured or killed by this.
Mauck says when road conditions are bad, drivers should get off their phones and pay attention to the traffic in front of you, not what emergency crews are doing.
“West Virginia has a Move Over Law. You must either move over one lane away from us or drop your speeds to 25mph on the highway or 15 miles an hour on side streets.”
