MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho — A routine grocery trip turned frightening for a Mountain Home family when a rock flew through their car window, covering their 5-month-old daughter with broken glass during chip sealing work on State Highway 67.
Connor Widmer and his wife, both Air Force base employees, immediately pulled over to check on their daughter.
"She was screaming and crying, just frightened because it was a loud thud and she didn't know what hit her," Widmer said.
Fortunately, a sunshade in the car protected Athena from serious injury, leaving her with only minor scratches.
"I have it in there to keep the sun out of her eyes. I'm worried that it would have ended up hitting her in the head and hurting her," Widmer said.
WATCH: A closer look at the damage left behind from the chip seal rock
The Idaho Department of Transportation said chip sealing is a cost-effective way to maintain roads before they break down.
"It's to treat the surface of a road before it deteriorates to the point where we would have to tear it up and completely reinstall the road, and that saves taxpayers a great deal of money," said Jill Youmans, public information officer for Idaho Department of Transportation District 3. "It's basically kind of like putting a weather coating on your deck, but for the road."
However, the maintenance work is proving costly for drivers like Widmer, who now faces a repair bill of nearly $500 for his shattered window, which is currently covered with a trash bag.
"I want to see Idaho Department of Transportation end up actually finishing up the road and doing an actual good job with maintaining the roads," Widmer said.
The Air Force base is bringing in repair crews to address the road conditions, according to Widmer.
ITD is urging drivers to slow down in work zones to avoid damage to their own cars and those of others.
"It provides our workers with safety because they're working there, but it also reduces the amount of road hazards," Youmans said.
Despite the incident, Widmer still has to take Highway 67 for his daily commute, though he’s found a back road to limit his time on it.
“A different road that is mostly paved, and then you just end up right on the outside of Mountain Home Air Force Base, so you only have to be on that gravel road for about three-fourths of a mile, which is not bad compared to the full drive,” said Widmer.
Drivers who experience damage can file a Tort Claim on the Idaho Department of Administration website.
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