MILWAUKEE — A Cudahy woman says a routine drive home from nursing school turned into one of the scariest moments of her life after her car hit a heat-buckled stretch of pavement Tuesday on the northbound I-41 exit ramp to College Avenue.
Twenty-one-year-old Alexis Ayala said she was about 10 minutes from home when her vehicle struck the raised pavement.
"I've always thought maybe there would be a fender bender, not me flying into the air and going nose down," Ayala said. "It felt so unreal."
Ayala, who is 24 weeks pregnant, said she drove herself to a Milwaukee hospital before being transferred by ambulance to Ascension All Saints Hospital in Racine.
She said doctors monitored her for hours after she experienced contractions.
Watch: Pregnant woman experiences scare when pavement buckles:
"My first thought was my baby," Ayala said. "I just kept crying and holding my belly and saying, 'My baby, is my baby okay?'"
TMJ4 cameras captured highway crews Tuesday afternoon closing the exit ramp while crews repaired the damaged pavement.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, pavement can buckle when temperatures quickly rise from cool to very hot.
As concrete expands, slabs can push against one another, causing the pavement to heave upward and create sudden bumps or dips.
"You couldn't see it until you were right in front of it. It was the beginning of the exit ramp, so you're still going full speed. Everyone was hitting that bump at 50 to 60 miles an hour," Ayala recalled.
Earlier this month, WisDOT reminded drivers that pavement buckling becomes more likely during periods of extreme heat and urged motorists to stay alert, slow down and report serious pavement hazards to 911.
"You could be doing everything right and something completely unpredictable happens, like the street bumping up like that," Ayala said.
WisDOT said crews plan to reopen the ramp Thursday morning.
TMJ4 has reached out to the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office for more information on when deputies first responded Tuesday and whether any injuries were reported.
Ayala said she and her unborn son are both doing well.
Her family has created a GoFundMe to help cover medical expenses following the incident.
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