BROWNSVILLE, Texas (KRGV) – A Texas man is warning other drivers about the dangers of debris on the road.
His message comes after a metal rod smashed through his windshield on the expressway.
“The 18-wheeler ran over a discarded piece of running board from another vehicle,” Charlie Armendariz described. “The running board subsequently flipped up in the air and came down, went through the windshield of my Jeep of my vehicle and it went through the passenger side.”
A metal bar pierced through Armendariz’s windshield on Tuesday afternoon.
Armendariz says a mechanic was test driving his car after fixing it up. Thankfully, he was riding alone.
“Had there been a passenger, I’m afraid they might have been severely injured, if not worse,” Armendariz said.
Armendariz says he’s seen lots of objects on the road, but never thought it would impact him directly.
“There have been a number of occasions when I’ve called in to the local police department to tell them there was debris in the road and it generally results from somebody who’s traveling in a pickup truck-type vehicle that doesn’t secure their load,” Armendariz said.
Luckily for Armendariz, the shop also fixed up the windshield for him.
Still, Armendariz says it’s made him think twice about following distance, who he’s driving behind and even objects in the wind.
“Especially lately, with these high winds, I’ve seen bags blowing across the expressway. Imagine if one blew across your windshield for a second, obscured your view,” Armendariz said.
But Armendariz says it starts with other drivers. He has a message for people transporting materials and heavy objects.
“If the guy carrying the stuff would tie it down, guys who were driving behind might not be so prone to run into the debris,” Armendariz suggested.
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