A 17-year-old died after a car struck him along Interstate 695 in Baltimore County as he was changing a tire, authorities said, adding to a growing list of fatalities from auto crashes in the region.

Maryland State Police said the teenage boy was a passenger in a Lexus IS that stalled in the right lane on the highway just before 1:30 a.m. Sunday. The teenager, whom police officials declined to identify because of his age, was changing the car’s tire when a Honda Accord struck the rear driver’s side of the Lexus and him. Police said the Lexus’ hazard lights were activated at the time.

The boy was pronounced dead at the scene, state police said. Kyeahle Lamerah Armstead, an 18-year-old from Baltimore who was driving the Lexus, was injured. Officials did not share Armstead’s condition.

In the event of a breakdown, state officials advise exiting the roadway or moving your car as far away from active travel lanes as possible. They recommend staying in the car with the hazard lights on. If you must leave your vehicle, officials recommend moving to a protected area to avoid being injured if your car is hit by a moving vehicle.

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“AAA advises drivers who may become disabled at the roadside to pull their car as far away from the road as possible, and put on flashers to indicate to other motorists that you are having some difficulties if you have to change a tire,“ Ragina Ali, a spokesperson for AAA in Maryland and Washington, D.C., said in an email.

“For drivers on a highway, it’s much safer to pull off at the nearest exit, if that is an option, as roads with less traffic are less dangerous and often have safe areas to pull off.”

The fatality comes seven months after Ahmed Waqus Qayun Kahn, a 30-year-old from Virginia, died when a Chevy Equinox struck him along I-695 after he got out of a Camry that had collided with another car.

Maryland State Police arrested Zaqueo Issac Alvarenga Menjivar, 32, of Cockeysville, three months later for hitting Kahn and fleeing the scene. Online court records show that he faces 16 charges, including reckless driving, negligent manslaughter and failure to remain at or return to the scene of an accident.

Crash fatalities across the state are down to 226 so far this year compared to 277 around this time in 2025, data from the state’s Highway Safety Office shows. Baltimore County has had the second-most crash fatalities in Maryland with 29, trailing the 36 in Prince George’s County. Of the 29 people who’ve died in Baltimore County crashes, at least 13 of them have been pedestrians, according to state data.