PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA — An Allegheny County woman says she’s lucky to be alive after a large sheet of ice flew off a tractor-trailer and crashed through her windshield on Interstate 376 near Robinson Township last weekend.

Madeline Grace said she was driving on I-376 when the ice came off the top of a passing tractor-trailer, crossed lanes, and slammed into her vehicle. She suffered multiple facial fractures and broken bones, and doctors say she may need surgery and could potentially lose eyesight in one eye.

“It was just a really loud crunch — the glass — and it hitting my face,” Grace said.

Grace’s 7-year-old daughter was in the backseat during the crash and was not physically hurt, but Grace said the incident has had an emotional impact on her. Grace recalled her daughter telling her it was the “worst day ever,” and said her child instinctively raised an arm to protect herself when the ice hit.

Grace, a crisis counselor supervisor, said her training helped her stay calm and think quickly during the emergency.

Her attorney, John Biedrzycki, noted that Pennsylvania law requires drivers to clear snow and ice from vehicles, including commercial trucks, and said the crash could have been prevented. He also pointed to equipment used in some areas that can help remove snow and ice from trucks by driving through a mounted clearing rig.

Pennsylvania State Police are working to identify the truck the ice came from and are asking anyone who was in the area Saturday morning around 10 a.m. to check dash cam footage and come forward with information.

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