Massachusetts State Police

Icy Conditions Christmas Day Making For Slick Roads in Mass.

One driver sustained life-threatening injuries in a single-car crash in Saugus early Saturday

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Freezing rain Christmas morning has made for treacherous conditions on roadways across Massachusetts.

Nearly 700 pieces of Department of Transportation equipment were deployed across Massachusetts roadways Saturday to help deal with the ice and snow. Meanwhile, numerous crashes were reported in New Hampshire as well on Christmas morning.

At the Newton Service Plaza, driver Linda Bento said she saw cars "sliding off the road" or getting into fender-benders.

"People just aren't slowing down," she said.

Early in the morning in Saugus, Massachusetts State Police responded to a crash along Route 1 in which the operator of the vehicle was ejected and sustained life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

The car, a 2009 Honda Civic, crashed around 3:05 a.m. Saturday on the northbound side of Route 1. The car exited the roadway, state police officials said, striking a commercial sign about 10 feet off the ground before settling in the right lane.

The operator was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital, state police said.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

The Massachusetts Turnpike had a speed restriction of 40 mph in place for vehicles traveling west between Palmer and the border of New York State.

Freezing rain is widespread across New England on Christmas morning, making travel potentially dangerous.

Another crash was reported just over the New Hampshire-Massachusetts border with dozens of vehicles involved in a pileup.

Another crash occurred in Lexington in the early morning hours. No update was immediately available on any injuries.

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