Rhode Island driver blasted for cruising around with mountain of snow on top of SUV after historic blizzard
A reckless Rhode Island driver outraged their community by driving his SUV completely blanketed in snow the day after a historic winter storm wreaked havoc across the Northeast.
Viral footage obtained by WPRI shows the snow-caked vehicle with a mountain of snow piled on its roof cruising down an ice-and-slush-covered street Tuesday, the driver relying on a tiny cleared window for visibility just hours after the travel ban ended.
Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee had implemented a travel ban on all commercial vehicles as Winter Storm Hernando dumped 30 inches of snow in certain areas in the state on Sunday.
McKee lifted the travel restrictions two days later, but urged residents to use “extreme caution on local roads if travel is necessary.”
While the driver appeared to be able to see just enough, the outlet warned other motorists about the dangers of hitting the road in a car that wasn’t properly cleared off after the snowstorm.
“The travel ban has lifted, but do NOT drive if your car looks like this one. It’s important to clear your vehicle completely before hitting the road,” the station wrote in a Facebook post along with the video.
The post, which has racked up nearly five million views, drew fury from locals who slammed the driver for risking others’ safety — and pointed out they weren’t on the roads with cars in similar conditions.
“I pray they were just pulling it out the driveway and then got stuck in front of plow and had to spin the block, but still soo wrong,” one person commented.
“Apparently, common sense doesn’t fall from the sky like snow does,” commented another.
“I bet they banking on it to fall off so they dont have to do it,” speculated one user.
“I’ve actually seen that crap in person,” shared another outraged citizen.
“Tickets should be given out to anyone driving like this. There’s no excuse,” another commenter wrote.
The dangerous drive appears to violate Rhode Island General Law § 31-23-16, which requires motorists to fully clear snow and ice — not just carve out a peephole — before driving.
The Ocean State was slammed by the historic blizzard, burying communities under 30 to 37 inches of snow, with an overwhelming 35.5 inches falling Monday alone, according to the Weather Channel.
A staggering 37.9 inches recorded at TF Green International Airport in Warwick broke the station’s 121-year snowfall record, topping the Blizzard of 1978’s 28.6 inches.
The roads were also left a nightmare during the storm, with state troopers responding to nearly 300 spinouts on highways on Monday during the statewide travel ban.
Rhode Island State Police Maj. Erik Yanyar told WPRI that troopers handled 269 disabled vehicles, responded to 25 crashes and issued 40 citations for travel ban violations.
