New York man dead, 175 accidents reported after icy conditions `paralyze` Harford

Jan. 19--A 49-year-old New York man was killed in a Forest Hill crash Sunday that also left four others injured during an unusually treacherous icy morning in Harford County.

More than 170 accidents were reported in the wake of the sudden ice that covered Harford County, with multiple road closures and dangerous driving conditions persisting in the north and west part of the county throughout Sunday morning.

Local emergency responders said the county was "paralyzed" by ice, reporting more accidents than available resources and warning responders were having difficulty reaching some victims.

The county ultimately saw 175 accidents, with and without injuries, between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m., the Harford County Volunteer Fire & EMS Association reported.

The traffic nightmare was caused despite mere traces of ice, as the National Weather Service reported in a special statement issued at about noon.

"The entire county is paralyzed due to ice conditions," Harford County Fire & EMS Association reported on its media page on Facebook early Sunday.

Between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m., 206 calls were received at the Harford County 9-1-1 Center, according to Robert Thomas, spokesman for the Department of Emergency Services.

"It was a rare incident. These do occur and when they do occur, the thing is to try to get off the road," Thomas said.

Deadly crash

One of the earliest accidents Sunday morning was fatal, near the intersection of Route 23 and High Point Road.

David Winiarz, 49, of Staten Island, N.Y., was killed on Route 23 west of Grafton Shop Road after the Honda CR-V he was in crashed into another vehicle at about 8:10 a.m., Maryland State Police reported.

Winiarz was a rear passenger in the Honda, according to a press release.

The driver, David Chandlov, of Edison, N.J., and a front-seat passenger, Emily Chandlov, also of Edison, were both taken to Upper Chesapeake Medical Center with minor injuries, according to the press release and Maryland State Police Sgt. Mark Yingling.

The Honda CR-V was moving west on Route 23 when Chandlov lost control due to the icy roads and struck a Honda Pilot in the opposing lane, according to the press release.

The driver of the Pilot, Carey Lambros, of Baldwin, and a juvenile passenger, were also taken to Upper Chesapeake with minor injuries, Yingling said.

The other victims' ages were not available, Yingling said.

Ice effect

Shortly before noon, State Highway Administration closed Route 165 near the Baltimore County line "until an accident scene is cleared and road conditions improve," county emergency management reported.

Members of the Bel Air Volunteer Fire Company were unable to attend the funeral of Capt. Eric Steciak in Howard County; he was killed in the line of duty Jan. 6 while responding to an accident in Bel Air.

"This was a heart-wrenching decision for leadership to make but the safety of all personnel is priority," the fire company reported on its Facebook page.

Joppa-Magnolia firefighters nevertheless reported attending the funeral, thanking Huntingtown Volunteer Fire Department via Twitter for filling in. Harford County Executive Barry Glassman also reported heading out to the afternoon funeral.

The funeral was delayed 30 minutes, Howard emergency services reported.

Emergency responders from across the region filled in for each other as calls for service piled up. Joppa-Magnolia reported being on a call in Bel Air with Cecil County Department of Emergency Services along with Darlington Volunteer Fire Company.

"It's been that kinda morning in Harford County," the fire department said on Twitter.

Events and classes were canceled around the county. Some churches, including Aberdeen's EPIC Community Church and Forest Hill's Way of Life Church, reported canceling all Sunday morning services.

Some stores, like Stalefish Board Company in downtown Bel Air, reported "running a bit late due to the ice" but generally seemed open.

In Bel Air, for example, Sweet Frog Frozen Yogurt reported opening at 1 p.m. and Peace Yoga on Main Street canceled an 11 a.m. class.

Some roads in the northern part of the county remained slick until well after noon, county government reported.

Unexpected storm

At about 9 a.m., Harford department of public works crews were being called in, according to Cindy Mumby, spokesperson for Harford County Government. The county was expected to have 20 trucks on the road, five trucks per section, shortly.

"They will deal with conditions as advised," she said. "There won't be mass salting, they'll be hitting areas where they're advised are slippery conditions."

The National Weather Service advised the Harford County Emergency Operations Center around 9:30 a.m. that the freezing rain and ice advisories would continue for Harford County until 11 a.m., according to Edward Hopkins, director of the Harford Department of Emergency Services.

Both he and Mumby said Sunday morning's weather was unexpected.

"As of midnight, it was only rain called for," Mumby said. "Rain was predicted and it's turned into this in some areas. We were going off predictions and they're monitored very closely."

Hopkins said the weather patterns changed around 7 a.m. His staff reporting for work at 7 a.m. encountered few problems on their way in, but shortly after that began getting multiple calls for accidents.

The EOC was activated to Level 3 Sunday, which means personnel were helping to manage the ice event, Hopkins said.

Every fire company in the county was responding to multiple calls.

In some instances, emergency equipment was having difficulty getting to accident scenes.

"They're getting there, but it's very slow going because it's quite unpredictable. In some areas there is black ice. It's taking considerable time to get there," Hopkins said.

Even if the roads were passable, emergency responders were encountering ice on driveways and sidewalks, which further slowed their responses.

According to the Fire & EMS page, "providers are having to park their units and walk to check on accidents and passengers of vehicles. This creates additional hazards for providers to slipping and falling on the ice."

At least two pieces of Bel Air Volunteer Fire Company's equipment were involved in accidents.

On Hickory Avenue in Bel Air, a fire truck knocked out power to the area. And a medic unit ran off Tollgate Road, Hopkins, a member of the fire company, said. No injuries were reported in either of those.

According to the Fire & EMS page, fire department and EMS resources "are stretched to the max with the ice event. There are more events than resources. Please stay off the road and stay where you are."

Among the roads considered impassable were Baltimore Pike at Lake Fanny Hill south of Bel Air and Jarrettsville Road near High Point. Route 1 at Reckord Road was shut down because of ice.

The following is a list of crashes reported by Fire & EMS Facebook page and Harford Fire Blog:

Thomas Run and Pennington roads near Campus Hills; Route 1 and Old Joppa Road south of Bel Air; Laurel Bush and Wheel roads in Emmorton; Route 1 at Deer Creek Bridge near Darlington; Baldwin Mill Road and Bucks Lane in Fallston; Route 23 and Norrisville Road in Jarrettsville; Carsins Run Road at Stepney Road in Aberdeen; Post Road and Old Bay Lane in Havre de Grace; Magnolia Road in Joppa; Route 1 and Sandy Hook Road in Street; Tollgate Road in Bel Air; Route 24 and Otter Creek Ramp in Edgewood; Mountain Road in Joppa; and Main Street in Darlington.

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