freaky tow

[gwaii]

i don't work for the local garage,but sometimes get called to do tows when there aren't any regular employees available.got a call today that there was a car that had gone in the ditch at white creek.i know this spot,it's a sharp corner after a small bridge on a gravel road.i'm thinking some drunk kid tried to get around the corner too fast and got stuck-get there and theres a 05 f150 in a section of the ditch that's about 7' deep and with vertical sides...it's on it's side on the bottom.an elderly lady comes up to me,saying she was the driver.i can see it's going to be a difficult recovery(big chance of it getting half way out and rolling over)when she tells me her husband is still in the passenger seat and can't get out because he just had bypass surgery and couldn't twist or climb out.otherwise he's ok.so now i know i need to get this thing out fast,and a rollover is not an option.it took a bit of doing,and the stress level was high,but i got it out.there was no damage to the truck or the occupants,and they drove off.did not like doing that at all.

 

[swynx]

sounds dangerous haha. they pay u for this?

 

[gwaii]

sounds dangerous haha. they pay u for this?

yea,$100 for about 40 minutes including driving there and back.need a pretty good reason to recover a vehicle with a person in it,though.especially a high risk one like that.

 

[strvger]

next time, you might want to have an ambulance standing by. having been a cardiac nurse for most of the last 19 years, those surgeries can be problematic until they've had several weeks to really heal. as the passengers was new surgery (probably a week old or so) that was kinda risky.
and if i was him, i'd let someone else drive me home after surgery next time for sure!!
you did a good job obviously.

 

[colby450xc]

It was pretty dumb of the driver and passenger to not call an ambulance in that situation. Something like that should not be the responsibility of the tow truck driver. Good job though..

 

[ChrisR1S]

Thats a lot of liability on you had something happened to the occupant in the vehicle. Here, any situation like that, EMS and Fire personnel are called to the scene and no one else is allowed to touch the vehicle until the occupants are removed, THEN its on the tow driver to safely remove the vehicle. Glad all went well all the same

 

[gwaii]

i agree with what you all said there-i would have rather had ems standing by,or at least been informed of the situation before going out.this was a remote area,and by then it probably would have taken another hour to get the right people there.i decided that taking the chance was the best option,as i have done this type of recovery many times before(without the medical risk)and not had a problem.still felt a huge amount of pressure doing it.

 

[crbnunit]

Good on you for helping. That was a horrible risk you took liability wise though!

 

[OilPatch197]

Good on you for helping. That was a horrible risk you took liability wise though!

Isn't life full of risk?

Even if something did go wrong and you racked up a million dollar medical bill, you just need to take it to bankruptcy court.

 

[gwaii]

financial liability isn't really a concern-that's why the garage has insurance.my concern was simply for the safety of the gentleman in the truck.i just wish it had been practical(or safe)to get him out first.