A Ronkonkoma woman says a paving project on the Long Island Expressway damaged all four of her tires Tuesday afternoon.

Sandra Granito says it happened between exits 61 and 62, and she's blaming the state Department of Transportation.

"They were forcing everybody off the road at 61, and it was me and a whole bunch of other cars being forced into one lane to get off the highway," she says. "All of us were picking up a whole bunch of gravel and didn't think anything of it until I started to drive away off the ramp and heard a very loud thumping noise."

She says she pulled over and saw all of her tires coated in hot tar from the roadwork, ruining them. It cost her $500 to get new tires, she says.

Granito says she has filed a complaint with the state DOT, demanding reimbursement.

"They did lay a whole bunch of tar down, and it wasn't probably cured properly," she says. "And not only that, they're directing a whole bunch of traffic over a highway over it. So just a whole bunch of poor planning."

She says she hopes the DOT will repay drivers for the damage.

"Excessive heat and other environmental factors can sometimes alter pavement surfaces," the DOT said in a statement. "NYSDOT will be monitoring conditions throughout this heat wave."