CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The towing industry is partnering with AAA in a campaign to save lives as more of the country opens and more people are on the roads.
Nick Jarmusz, with AAA, said too many tow truck operators are being killed in preventable crashes.
“According to the CDC, one automotive service provider on average is killed in the line of duty every other week,” he said during a Zoom news conference announcing the campaign. "Making the towing industry fifteen times deadlier than all other private industries combined.”
Bruce Pedigo, President of the Professional Towing and Recovery Operators of Illinois and owner of Joe’s Towing, in Bloomington, described an incident in which his two sons could have been killed.
One son was in the truck, while the other was in the ditch along a highway. The son in the truck saw a car coming that was speeding in the right lane and veered off the highway.
"My youngest son, Noah, starting calling out his brothers name - Josh, Josh, Josh! When Josh looked at him, Noah yelled 'car.' There was a car coming straight at him in the ditch," Pedigo said.
The son in the ditch looked up to see the out of-control car coming toward him in the median. The car hit the tow truck. Neither of his sons was hurt.
But, Pedigo said, his biggest fear is that one of his sons or one of his employees will be killed by someone who is not only distracted, but is driving too fast.
And, he said, he sees that in the severity of crashes in the past year - more damage to vehicles.
Jarmusz, with AAA, said while there have been fewer cars on the roads over the past year, there have been more fatalities, because of excessive speeds.
And, he said, most people are unaware of laws requiring drivers to slow down and move over, if possible, for emergency vehicles.
“Illinois, just like every other state in the country has a 'Slow Down, Move Over' law that protects roadside workers, including tow truck drivers, but fewer than 30 percent of Americans are aware of these laws, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration," Jarmusz said.
Related
