A driver was extricated from a vehicle on the Capital Beltway on Nov. 26, 2019. (Courtesy MCRFS/Pete Piringer) Tuesday morning’s commute took a terrifying turn for a woman driving on the Capital Beltway’s Outer Loop when a piece of metal debris flew through her windshield and nearly impaled her. Initially, Montgomery County, Maryland, fire personnel said the driver was impaled through her chest with a metal, stake-like object. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue spokesman Pete Piringer said later that further assessment revealed she was not impaled and only sustained minor, impact-related wounds. Police and first responders were dispatched to the Outer Loop between Md. Route 355 and Connecticut Avenue around 6:15 a.m. They found a woman trapped in a minivan, where the windshield and steering wheel had been pierced with a metal object 3 feet long and 4 inches wide. Aerial footage from WTOP’s news partner NBC Washington showed rescue workers using hydraulic equipment and a buzzsaw to break through the wreckage, shielding the woman from sparks and providing life support, before she was freed and transported to a trauma center. As of 8 a.m., the woman’s condition was considered serious but stable.
