WILMINGTON, MASS. (WHDH) - A man driving on Interstate 93 in Wilmington was injured Wednesday morning when a block of wood flew off a truck on the opposite side of the highway and smashed through his windshield, officials said.
Officers responding to the incident on the northbound side of the highway around 9 a.m. found a Toyota with a large hole in its windshield and a chunk of wood on the floor inside, according to the Wilmington Police Department.
The driver, a 33-year-old Methuen man, was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries.
“Originally, I thought it was a paper bag,” he told 7NEWS. “It was a brown object the way it looked. It flew overhead. The next thing you know, it was like this big four-by-four, kind of like chalk that went dead smack through the window.”
The operator of this vehicle is a very lucky after having a chalk block come through his windshield on I-93 in #WilmingtonMA this morning! The operator was transported to the hospital with minor injuries. Remember to secure all items that could fall from your vehicle or trailer! pic.twitter.com/1DvhbzrJ72
— Wilmington MA Police (@WilmingtonMAPD) June 19, 2019
The state employee, who wanted to remain anonymous, says he was left covered in glass.
“This could have been a life and death situation,” he added. “This could have been a lot more.”
The chalk block, which is typically used to secure truck and trailer tires to prevent rollovers, pierced the windshield at just the right angle and missed the man.
“The state trooper said if I had been going any faster, instead of coming through the front it could have come through the side,” he said. “I probably could have been knocked out.”
The truck that the block flew off of has not yet been located, according to state police.
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