Areas of Rhode Island were underwater on Monday after intense rain fell for hours, causing major roadways such as the Thurbers Avenue curve to flood, and making for horrific driving conditions and unforgiving traffic.

On her way home from Connecticut, one New Bedford woman found herself stuck on I-95 for over five hours. She shared her story on Michael and Maddie, noting she believed she wasn’t making it home that afternoon.

“It was stressful,” Heidi Sansoucy said, recalling her day stuck during a record-breaking rainfall.

Thanks to the holiday, Sansoucy was able to leave her job in Connecticut at 2 p.m. to head back home to New Bedford.

“It didn’t rain in Connecticut at all; I had no idea what I was going into,” she said. “After about 35 minutes on the highway, it was a complete stop.”

Get our free mobile app

At first, Sansoucy thought the cause was a terrible accident, but after an hour and 40 minutes, she knew it was something else.

It wasn’t until she went on Facebook and saw the images popping up of the highway underwater that she realized what was happening.

“I was nowhere near home and there was nowhere to turn around. It was just a parking lot,” she said.

A few more hours went by, and Sansoucy became concerned that she would be spending the night in her truck, alongside hundreds of other drivers in their own vehicles.

In anticipation of the rain forecasted for Tuesday and Wednesday, Sansoucy decided to call out of work, and after that terrible experience, she realized she needed to plan ahead.

“I’ll be making a bag with some water in it, a blanket, some granola bars and some snacks and stuff, because I really thought I was not getting home last night,” she said.

It’s safe to say that Rhode Island’s drought is in the rearview, but a new obstacle has emerged for Rhode Island Public Works.

It may be time for a new drainage system in the Ocean State.

The SouthCoast Surveys the Damage From Hurricane Ida Remnants

Some great photos submitted to Gazelle shows the incredible amount of water dumped onto the SouthCoast from the remnants of Hurricane Ida.

More From WFHN-FM/FUN 107