‘It could kill somebody:’ Woman says large rock was thrown at her car along highway

By Taylor Thompson

Click here for updates on this story

    ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — An Asheville woman warns drivers to stay vigilant after she says a rock smashed the top of her car as she drove under a bridge along Interstate 26.

Late Saturday night, Marisol Alonzo said she and her daughter were on the way home from her sister’s house. They had just crossed under a bridge on I-26 when Alonzo said she heard a startling noise on the top of her car causing her to immediately pull over.

She said her daughter was terrified, and when Alonzo got out of the car to see what had happened, she saw her sunroof smashed in and her right passenger side mirror gone.

Alonzo immediately called the Asheville Police Department; she said an officer came and took pictures at the scene but wasn’t sure what exactly happened.

“At that point, he said maybe a piece of concrete came out of the old bridge, or someone threw something at us,” she said.

The next morning, Alonzo went back to investigate for herself. She said that she saw pieces of rock and the remainder of the big piece of rock that she believed someone threw at her car.

The incident comes a week after a woman in Colorado was killed when a rock was thrown at her car. According to their local sheriff’s office, the rock went through the woman’s windshield and killed her. Three teens are now charged with murder in the case.

Police told Alonzo that it was an isolated incident, but that didn’t put her mind at ease. She now warning other drivers to be overly cautious because when you’re driving on a highway, your immediate reaction isn’t to always look up at a bridge.

“I mean, you drive 65 per hour on the highway, and you’re just focused on the road and not on top of the bridge, but at this point, that’s what I’m doing,” she said.

Because of work, Alonzo said she has to take I-26 daily, especially at night.

“Whoever did this, just please stop doing this because this could kill somebody. Period,” she urged.

Alonzo said the incident left a big dent in her wallet between the repairs, car rental, and the time she’s had to take off from work.

But, Alonzo is still thankful that nothing happened to her or her daughter, as the situation could have been much worse.

“It is emotional. You know, my daughter is taking Drivers Ed class, and she was panicking. I mean, it’s just something very unexpected,” she said.

Alonzo said that police told her there were no cameras on the bridge where the incident took place, so it’s much harder to find a suspect or suspects.

She said it’s terrifying knowing that whoever did this is still out there.

“The people who are doing this, they’re gonna do it again, that’s for sure,” she said.

In the meantime, she has remained focused on counting her blessings because if the rock had hit even a second sooner, it could have crashed through her windshield.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.