Extreme Tow | Highway Thru Hell

Added: 2026-05-27

[00:00:05]The 70-ft long pump truck You had a bad night? Uh it's getting there. has sunk Heavy, heavy. into a soft driveway. What do you weigh? Uh about 44 kg. 44? 44?

[00:00:19]At 44,000 kg, or nearly 100,000 lb, the pump truck dwarfs Dylan's wrecker. It's over twice the weight of our wrecker.

[00:00:32]And the massive machine must be at another construction site by morning.

[00:00:39]With extendable booms reaching 200 ft pump trucks stretch across construction sites [music] to pour liquid concrete.

[00:00:51]The truck's folding [music] arms tuck back onto the vehicle for transport.

[00:00:58]What are we going to do?

[00:00:59]Recovering the pump truck will be a huge challenge. So, we're going to add a little heavier and help it out of the driveway it's stuck in right now.

[00:01:09]But as Dylan rigs We don't want to damage the pavement here.

[00:01:13]Ken has another concern.

[00:01:16]Ripping [music] up fresh asphalt and concrete curbs. I'm worried about the new pavement because if we put our legs down we will peel that pavement right back.

[00:01:29]To anchor his wrecker, Dylan wants to drop his spades. But We don't break this, we don't break the pavement.

[00:01:37]he's overruled by his boss. I'm not putting no marks on this cuz it's brand new.

[00:01:45]To winch the pump truck up the driveway Dylan will run a double low line with two snatch blocks to maximize his pulling power.

[00:01:57]Okay, let's see what [music] we got.

[00:01:59]Okay.

[00:02:01]Bring her back.

[00:02:03]Dylan begins to winch.

[00:02:13]Just easy. Easy.

[00:02:15]But the pumper is putting up a fight.

[00:02:22]Don't spin them, okay?

[00:02:24]Give a little >> back.

[00:02:28]Little bit stop. Little bit and stop.

[00:02:32]Now, Dylan's record is being dragged backwards. Hold it.

[00:02:40]All right, she was anchored. I have enough pull. I don't have enough anchor.

[00:02:45]A foot at a time.

[00:02:48]I'm trying to overcome the weight that's stuck.

[00:02:53]Tighten up.

[00:02:54]I ain't going to lie. Trouble here.

[00:03:01]Hold there, rope.

[00:03:02]Rope.

[00:03:05]In BC's Fraser Valley, Tighten up, Dylan.

[00:03:10]Ken and Dylan are in a tug-of-war with a 50-ton pump truck.

[00:03:22]Hold it.

[00:03:23]Dragging you back? I'm just getting back. That's the only thing. I have too much pull.

[00:03:27]>> but when you put another block on it, will make a difference. It'll make your load lighter. I'll show you.

[00:03:32]Ken's solution is to add another snatch block.

[00:03:36]But Dylan has his doubts. If it works, I'll give you 100 bucks.

[00:03:41]Really? Yeah, sure.

[00:03:44]I'm confident Ken's plan's not going to work. Hopefully, it'll make your pull easier.

[00:03:49]Careful.

[00:03:51]Dad, I need help.

[00:03:53]I would like to just dig the spades into the ground and pull this thing up.

[00:03:58]Little more.

[00:04:00]Right on. All right. It's not worth fighting with it, apparently.

[00:04:04]Makes it easier, believe me.

[00:04:07]With the extra snatch block Okay, go.

[00:04:13]Dylan winches while Ken jams blocks of wood behind the wheels You're in real trouble, Ken, if you start spinning.

[00:04:22]to keep the pump truck from rolling away. Okay, come on back. His hand inches from the 50-ton load. Keep going, Dylan.

[00:04:31]Lock yourself.

[00:04:34]If you get too excited [music] then you start making mistakes.

[00:04:39]Then accidents happen. I got to back over the curb, Ken. The boss's strategy Wait. isn't working. What's that? I have to dig in. So, Ken lets Dylan try it his way.

[00:04:52]So, I think the wood takes the load, not the not the curb.

[00:04:55]Let's hope.

[00:05:04]Using blocks to buffer his wrecker's weight Dylan backs over the new curb.

[00:05:12]Little more. Good.

[00:05:18]At least I can dig my spades in the As far as I can go.

[00:05:21]And anchors his truck into the ground.

[00:05:25]All right. Hopefully she sits this time.

[00:05:30]Okay, we're ready.

[00:05:33]Firmly planted and closer to the target Dylan pulls again. We gained about 6 in.

[00:05:42]Come in. Yeah. Until finally, the hulking vehicle crawls up the driveway.

[00:05:49]We're winning now.

[00:05:51]Dylan was right.

[00:05:53]Put the spades [music] in the dirt. Sink them in.

[00:05:56]That really makes the difference.

[00:06:00]Uh stop there. Woah.

[00:06:04]We're over the hump.

[00:06:06]We got to pull forward.

[00:06:14]Finally, under its own power. Big dog.

[00:06:17]Pull the cable. Keep Keep coming.

[00:06:19]Keep coming.

[00:06:22]Just tell him to stop before you rear-end me. Woah. The pump truck is out.

[00:06:28]Woah.

[00:06:29]That's it. That's a winner.

[00:06:31]We got her. Awesome. Thank you, Dylan.

[00:06:33]No problem. Anytime.

[00:06:35]It doesn't always work the way you think it's going to work. Yeah, concrete looks good. We didn't damage nothing. So, there we go.

[00:06:42]I think Dylan [music] did very well on this job.

[00:06:45]He had the right idea. I guess the old man owes me 100 [music] bucks.

[00:06:53]The driver was lucky to escape with only minor injuries.

[00:06:58]This truck struck one of the rocks over here and of course ended up across the oncoming lane. Luckily, missed everybody.

[00:07:03]So, as of right now, we've got the highway blocked.

[00:07:10]The truck is so close to the tracks, trains can't pass until it's clear.

[00:07:16]Open the door.

[00:07:17]This is the one. This is the one.

[00:07:19]It's up here, right?

[00:07:20]A rail supervisor arrives on scene. This is main line track. We can't be stopping trains for too long.

[00:07:27]Hundreds and thousands of dollars worth of merchandise on these trains, so Until the semi is recovered, the main highway and railway to the west coast is shut down. Two major arteries. Double closure, double pressure, absolutely.

[00:07:41]The pressure's on us to get this tractor trailer out of there.

[00:07:48]High on the Coquihalla. All the code drivers.

[00:07:53]Chain up city.

[00:07:59]The storm still has traffic at a crawl.

[00:08:04]But a red truck has come to the rescue.

[00:08:07]Jamie Davis Tow Truck calling everybody up there.

[00:08:11]All hell has broken loose.

[00:08:13]Scott Bird will try to get the Coke rolling again, towing semis up the steepest section of the highway.

[00:08:22]It's just crazy. There's trucks butt out everywhere.

[00:08:28]You know, it's just total chaos.

[00:08:32]Can you see me starting to roll? Start easing your foot up on the clutch. Don't overcook it or nothing. Do that, I'll hit you and away we go.

[00:08:42]But the veteran operator can't win this fight alone.

[00:08:47]Hey Mike, you copy?

[00:08:50]Yep.

[00:08:51]Scott's called in the newest member of Jamie's team. Okay, is that working? All right.

[00:08:56]I'll be back to go check that spot.

[00:09:00]Mike Reynolds is usually fixing Jamie's trucks, not driving them.

[00:09:06]It's a pretty crazy evening up here.

[00:09:08]Tonight, >> [music] >> Mike will get his first shot on the mountain and a chance to prove himself to Scott.

[00:09:15]Earlier in the season, Okay, Mike.

[00:09:17]What's Mike doing? Mike. Scott's patience was tested by the rookie. Okay, Mike. Would you go hook onto the trailer for me, please?

[00:09:25]>> You sure you don't want to do it for me?

[00:09:27]Jamie's lead wasn't sure if the newbie could follow directions on scene. So before you do anything, check with the scene coordinator. Jamie's the owner of the place. I'm the scene coordinator.

[00:09:39]Okay?

[00:09:43]Tonight Where are you at, Mike? Yeah, I just pulled over on the side of the road here. We've got a one spot.

[00:09:49]Scott is hoping to turn things around.

[00:09:52]I want to take Mike and I want to slowly start mentoring him and then and teaching him the way that we need to do things.

[00:10:02]If you're willing to learn, I'm willing to teach.

[00:10:07]With Scott busy on his eighth tow up of the night, Mike will have to tackle any problem by himself.

[00:10:20]Every truck has to have chains on board.

[00:10:21]Huh? You got some? No, I'm first time here. Oh, oh well. You got a tow pin up [music] front?

[00:10:28]Perfect. We'll get up there in no time.

[00:10:33]In or out?

[00:10:36]Jamie's got his whole fleet up here.

[00:10:41]I think it'd be pretty fun to be running the heavy rescue truck. Jamie and Scott, the season pros.

[00:10:46]Living the dream.

[00:10:57]Okay.

[00:10:58]Hey, you got any bolt cutters?

[00:11:00]Yeah, can't get this chain off. All right, give me 2 seconds. When Scott needs a hand, Hey, Mikey, you on that?

[00:11:07]I'm on it, Mike.

[00:11:09]Mike answers the call. The white truck is running.

[00:11:12]Uh cut his chains off the driver's side for him.

[00:11:16]Sounds good.

[00:11:20]>> [music] >> Turns out this driver My My chains on going down the hill there and they peeled off and got caught in the axle.

[00:11:27]He was also new to the Coquihalla. Got my curry boy.

[00:11:31]This the first time that I've been on the Coquihalla.

[00:11:34]Let's put it this way, we're on the highway to hell. That's what they say.

[00:11:37]All right.

[00:11:38]Thanks, man. I appreciate it. No trouble.

[00:11:40]Have a good night, boss. You, too.

[00:11:44]I don't like it.

[00:11:46]I'm going back to prairies.

[00:11:48]But, keeping up with Scott won't be easy.

[00:11:52]Yes, genius. What's going on?

[00:11:56]Yeah, showing you how it's done, son.

[00:11:58]Showing you how it's done.

[00:12:02]Mission Towing is trying to flip a wreck with no room for error. We have to squeeze Neil's big wrecker in between a rock wall and the front of this truck to get the right direction of pull.

[00:12:13]As Neil winches the tractor over, it creeps closer to the back of his wrecker. The biggest worry is that when it hits, it's going to slide right into my truck.

[00:12:25]We don't want to end up having a catastrophic failure here.

[00:12:30]Hang on.

[00:12:42]Right here.

[00:12:51]Son of a Like that much room.

[00:12:53]It's less than a foot away [music] from my truck.

[00:12:56]A little nerve-racking for a few seconds.

[00:12:59]That was close, man.

[00:13:05]Stay up.

[00:13:06]Yeah, buddy. We'll get hooked up, get this thing out of here, and get everybody rolling tonight.

[00:13:13]Nick notches another big win for his brother and the family business.

[00:13:18]I wish Jordie was here to see this. He'd uh he'd be very happy with what happened here tonight.

[00:13:24]Nick did phenomenal. Our crew is top-notch. [music] Being this is a complicated recovery, I'm very proud of them today.

[00:13:32]The wreck is clear.

[00:13:33]Yeah, Southern is open.

[00:13:35]The highway's reopened, but the job isn't over.

[00:13:40]Nick and his crew will return tomorrow to recover the rig's load of telephone poles over the bank.

[00:13:48]It's been a long day. Everybody's worked really hard.

[00:13:52]We're going to come back and deal with the logs in daylight.

[00:14:05]What's happening on the Coquihalla? Is it going all right?

[00:14:10]Heavy, heavy, heavy snowfall.

[00:14:13]High up on the Coquihalla. Holy crap, it's coming down here, eh?

[00:14:18]4 in of snow has come down in the last hour.

[00:14:22]Another 4 is forecast overnight. Just be careful up there, she's slippery.

[00:14:32]At 11:00 p.m.

[00:14:34]I'm just going to line up the Coquihalla.

[00:14:37]Multiple vehicle MVC, southbound Highway 5.

[00:14:41]Yeah, we just got a phone call there, so it's official.

[00:14:45]Operator Johnny Tipton has been dispatched to an accident near the summit. There is four or five cars involved in that incident. Yeah, pick up Jamie.

[00:14:55]Jamie Davis.

[00:14:57]On the radio, there's word that one of Jamie's trucks may be involved. That's quite a messy out there. I just went by, eh? Holy.

[00:15:06]We just had a call that the tender's been into a crash up there.

[00:15:11]I hope everybody's okay.

[00:15:18]Well.

[00:15:20]One of Jamie's flagging trucks was rear-ended by an SUV.

[00:15:26]Robert's girlfriend Loretta was inside the vehicle at the time. Did she get hit? Yeah, she got rear-ended. Okay. I don't want nothing to happen to her, you know.

[00:15:42]>> [music] >> He's going to go up and do an assessment on her. Thank you.

[00:15:47]Robert and Loretta had pulled over to assist at another accident.

[00:15:54]Now all of a sudden, I see this SUV coming.

[00:15:57]I looked at Loretta, and and that's when the Tundra got hit.

[00:16:02]My heart sunk.

[00:16:04]I don't want nothing to happen to her.

[00:16:06]I love her. She's my life, right?

[00:16:09]How's Loretta?

[00:16:11]Well, she's in pain and everything else.

[00:16:14]I'm just worried about her.

[00:16:16]Paramedics discover Loretta has only minor injuries. She could have been really seriously hurt.

[00:16:23]This is how scary it is up here. People want to go 120, 130, 140 on road conditions like that.

[00:16:32]What's the hurry?

[00:16:34]Her spinal cord could have broke from that hit. What if she couldn't move?

[00:16:40]If Loretta hadn't positioned the flagging truck where she did, other drivers could have been seriously injured or worse. I made that decision that night to put the Tundra in front [music] of the three-car pileup.

[00:16:56]For the rest of the night, Robert won't leave her side.

[00:17:03]She won't bang up.

[00:17:06]So, we're going to put on doctor's truck.

[00:17:09]I'm going to take it the last one.

[00:17:11]I got to be hurt, >> [music] >> you know, and do it again.

[00:17:22]>> Imagine if we didn't [music] have the flag trucks there.

[00:17:25]Imagine if they weren't a buffer.

[00:17:30]Think about it as if it was your loved one at the side of the highway.

[00:17:33]Would you drive a little differently?

[00:17:36]When you see flashing lights, slow down and move over.

[00:17:40]We all have families.

[00:17:46]Oh, no, no, no.

[00:17:49]James deploys a stiff leg Holy to anchor Black Sheep.

[00:17:57]Holy They managed to get the truck stopped.

[00:18:02]Pretty intense moment. Kind of scary.

[00:18:08]Look at that.

[00:18:10]3 in from going over. I thought it was game over for us.

[00:18:14]That's half a million dollars about to go over the left side.

[00:18:19]It's a very serious situation.

[00:18:21]All right.

[00:18:23]On his first recovery, it's the last thing Curtis expected to see. We were pretty close to losing two trucks.

[00:18:31]Me and James were just I think in shock.

[00:18:39]With Black Sheep on the brink, I don't even want to touch the truck.

[00:18:44]James calls for backup.

[00:18:47]Yeah. The owner of the truck stopped in front of me. And then the truck just started sliding backwards.

[00:18:53]In rough terrain, the situation could turn on a dime, and it becomes very dangerous. Okay. [music] Okay.

[00:19:00]Right.

[00:19:04]Minutes later, from the Reliable yard, a 50-ton wrecker is dispatched with crew supervisor Dylan Greenwood.

[00:19:17]Heavy wreckers are designed for highway use.

[00:19:20]If you have to take them in the bush, it beats the crap out of them.

[00:19:24]We're going up the hill. Take a look.

[00:19:27]Okay.

[00:19:28]While they wait, You're going to have to back the winch lines off. James turns his attention to the other wrecker on scene. Kurt had managed to lose traction in the same spot and started sliding backwards.

[00:19:44]Grab the snatch block, too, if you can.

[00:19:46]And the J-hook. They got to figure a way to get Kurt back up onto the road in a safe [music] spot.

[00:19:53]So, you're going to walk this cable up to the tree.

[00:19:59]Using their surroundings, a tree is used to secure the one-ton.

[00:20:07]We're going to pull this truck completely right over.

[00:20:11]Using this tree will actually anchor the truck, use the winches to pull the truck off the edge side.

[00:20:18]Hook it to the where that chain is.

[00:20:20]Pull that thing as tight as you can.

[00:20:25]With a redirected line, James slides the truck away from the edge.

[00:20:33]I think it's almost retirement time after that.

[00:20:36]That's the worst gut feeling I've had.

[00:20:38]>> Yeah, that was way too close.

[00:20:46]That's what stopped Kurt. [music] That's all that stopped him.

[00:20:53]Moments later, a welcomed sight rolls up. Hey, Dylan.

[00:21:01]The reliable 50-ton wrecker.

[00:21:04]Thor's got the pulling power to get the black sheep back up on solid ground.

[00:21:08]And lead operator How's it going, buddy?

[00:21:10]Dylan Greenwood Thanks for coming to the rescue.

[00:21:13]It's a smart choice. We're not chanting on losing any equipment over the side.

[00:21:18]Hopefully it makes it.

[00:21:21]Okay, so once you get tension, I'll lift the stiff leg, and then I'll release the brakes. Yep.

[00:21:27]Dylan tightens up his winch line.

[00:21:30]Okay.

[00:21:32]Ready? Yep.

[00:21:35]And carefully Keep pulling.

[00:21:38]tugs Black Sheep It's moving now. back to safety.

[00:21:43]Get set up there.

[00:21:44]Okay.

[00:21:45]Got it, James.

[00:21:49]James Hobson is record.

[00:21:52]We'll go to the top of the hill, and then we'll get spun around.

[00:21:55]And both heavies head uphill to turn around.

[00:22:00]If we're facing downhill, it's a short distance, and we're at the bottom.

[00:22:05]Not wasting any time.

[00:22:07]Hey, hold it right there.

[00:22:09]Hey.

[00:22:10]The rookie operator They thought we may needed a heavy for this one, but we'll see what we can do with the one-ton first. starts the recovery.

[00:22:19]With the situation that we just had, I definitely don't want to put the Black Sheep or even Thor at risk.

[00:22:30]But as Curtis begins the pull the slick road and tough terrain put up a fight.

[00:22:43]This pickup truck could get caught on tree stumps or rocks. Come on.

[00:22:47]up a steep bank. Got to be careful dragging it up the mountainside.

[00:22:53]They get caught on a lot of stuff.

[00:22:56]Keep it coming all the way.

[00:22:59]Okay. Hold there.

[00:23:03]But on the narrow road Okay, I'm going to throw this up to you.

[00:23:09]There's not enough room to land the pickup.

[00:23:13]We got to kind of change what we are doing here. We're going to run another line up to a tree.

[00:23:18]Just go through the rim, you can. Grab the front wheel, pull the truck up the rest of the way.

[00:23:24]Okay.

[00:23:26]Dylan You can ride, buddy.

[00:23:29]What? You can ride, buddy.

[00:23:30]Watch your head, buddy. Turns the complex pull Hey, you keep an eye on that tree up top, right? into a master class for Curtis.

[00:23:39]You can start bringing that line up as soon as you get a little tension on this one.

[00:23:44]Keep going. Keep going. Keep going.

[00:23:46]People have taken me under their wing, so I'm going to pass it on. Yeah, just suck this one up. Keep going a little more.

[00:23:53]Right there. Now, chase catch up to the other line.

[00:23:57]Just a little bit out of that one.

[00:23:58]Settle it out. You want the truck to do that almost.

[00:24:01]It's all right.

[00:24:04]It's good to see all these new hires take [music] the position.

[00:24:07]You're almost where you want to be.

[00:24:10]They were great at showing me what to do We're sitting now.

[00:24:15]and letting me do the recovery. And now that guy.

[00:24:22]After hours on the icy road Or and a few stressful moments >> Okay. Good.

[00:24:29]the reliable crew Line it up out there.

[00:24:32]Get it roughly into where you need it to be.

[00:24:35]is ready to head for home.

[00:24:38]It's been a long day. It's good to get this thing done. Go. Go strap on it.

[00:24:42]Okay.

[00:24:44]Actually, fared pretty good.

[00:24:47]Yeah.