Winter Storm Brings Business for Tow Truck Drivers
By: Alexandra Sutter WMBD/WYZZ
Updated: February 26, 2013
PEORIA COUNTY - Some businesses are
really benefitting from the snow. All Star Towing is one of them.
Snow, sleet, rain and ice - all elements
that can make your daily commute a difficult drive. Just ask All Star Towing
driver John Draggist. He said, "There were about 16 cars down in the ditches
from Bartonville out to 474 to the Allen Road exit."
Draggist is pulling people out of
ditches each time a winter storm blows through central Illinois. He said, "It's
not uncommon for us to get ten calls within the next two minutes."
He said he wishes people would learn a
lesson, but unfortunately, that's not always the case. He said, "I have towed
or wedged out a car out a ditch four times for the same reason. There's more
crazy drivers out there than people realize."
Even though the lights on his tow
truck aren't flashing red and blue, they still mean the same thing for drivers
and that is to slow down and move over.
Draggist said safety is a big concern
for him. He said tow truck drivers can be a lot like first responders. He wants
drivers to pump the brakes, especially as the roads get slick. "If they slow
down a little bit you know, leave a half hour earlier, they will get there safe
and sound. The car will be safe and sound. They wouldn't have to call us."
On the flip side, this winter weather
is keeping All Star Towing very busy. Draggist said that's a good problem to
have. He said, "It's almost like a little kid playing with a snowball or in a
snowfield, you know, we love it out here."
Draggist said the most unsafe spots are always on and off ramps and overpasses. He said those patches of the road are the first to ice and are always a concern.
