Icy roads, icy cars: How to avoid different hazards while driving in winter weather

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Central Virginia roads have been treacherous this week -- not just because of ice on the ground, but because of ice on other cars.

AAA says drivers should make sure their car is completely clear of ice and snow before hitting the road. Otherwise, those ice sheets on car roofs could come crashing down on nearby cars.

That's exactly what happened to William Billotti on Tuesday, driving down I-95 with his family.

"All of a sudden, see the piece of ice come off the car," Billotti said. "I tried to slow down and get over, but by then it was too late. It just came down and hit the side of the windshield, and it destroyed the windshield and the truck."

A large crack was left on Billotti's windshield, plus major damage to the passenger-side mirror.

"I had my kids in the car," Billotti said. "They were scared."

No one was hurt, but it could've ended much worse.

"I could've ran off the road, I could've hit another car," Billotti said. "I've still got to be responsible enough to go ahead and put another windshield in my vehicle now, because of somebody else's mistake."

Billotti was unable to catch up to the car the ice sheet fell off of to get the driver's information. He said he'll be paying for the repairs out of his own pocket.

Billotti isn't the only victim of ice on the roads. AAA is asking drivers to do their part before leaving the driveway.

"These ice chunks -- if you get the vehicle up to speed and the vehicle's warm, and they start loosening and they're still sitting up there -- they're going to fly off and could damage or cause crashes behind you," said Morgan Dean with AAA. "So don't do that on the roadway. Get all of that snow off your vehicle."

Warming up the vehicle before cleaning the ice will make it easier to scrape off.

And with more snow forecasted this weekend, the cleaning process will need to be repeated before heading anywhere.

"With cold temperatures like this, [the snow] can start to accumulate and really start to cause problems on the roadway," Dean said. "Know before you go, know what the road conditions are starting to look like. If you can stay home, that's your best bet."

Dean notes these important preparations to take before heading onto the road: Clear the snow off vehicles, leave extra time to get to the destination, plan on driving slower than the speed limit and leave a wide following distance to react to any hazards on the road.