Heavy Duty Towing Service Needed for Vac Truck Recovery & Cleanup Job
Puddle Jumper Towing is no stranger to providing heavy duty towing and other recovery services. However, a recent job proved to be a unique challenge after a vacuum truck blew a tire and ran off the road. Fortunately, nobody was injured and we were able to add this job to our vast portfolio of heavy towing and heavy duty recovery successes.
The call came in around 5:30 PM during rush hour. A vac truck was traveling north along Interstate 5 near Cottage Grove, Oregon at highway speed when one of the front steering tires blew. Despite his best efforts to stay in the lane, the driver could not control the vehicle.
After taking out over 200 feet of guard rail before it gave out, the truck ran off the road and down an embankment. 20-30 trees were hit before the vac truck came to a stop. While shaken up and scared, the driver managed to place a call to the Puddle Jumper heavy duty towing team.
Our heavy towing crew arrived on scene shortly after to assist. A quick assessment of the situation made it clear that this was going to be a challenging recovery.
Due to the trees and roots that the truck ran over, the front axle was completely ripped out and found sitting underneath the cab of the truck. The cab was damaged, the wheels were gone, the motor ripped out, and parts underneath the truck such as the battery box and fuel tank ruptured.
Given the amount of roots and trees stuck underneath the truck, as well as the lack of wheels, a tree truck was called in to dig a trench around the vac truck. As this type of truck is very heavy, weighing 35,000 lbs empty and up to 50-60,000 lbs when full, multiple wreckers were needed to drag the truck back up the embankment.
The Puddle Jumper heavy duty towing team attached the winch hooks from our V103 50-ton wrecker and 16-ton medium duty wrecker to the vacuum truck and began dragging it up the hill. Another 16-ton medium duty wrecker remained on the Interstate with an attached winch line to ensure that the vac truck did not flip over as it was recovered.
Once the vacuum truck reached the roadway again, the heavy towing team realized it would be necessary to dig the truck back out again. The dirt, roots, and other debris that it pulled back onto the roadway were cleared. Next, a flatbed tow truck was loaded with the broken truck parts and axles for hauling.
While normally this would have been sufficient for providing heavy duty towing services, the nature of this call necessitated haz-mat control and cleanup solutions. The fuel tank was pumped off and we treated the ground to alleviate the effects of the 20 to 30 gallons of diesel fuel that spilled, as well as the oil from the engine.
We didn’t wrap things up to head home until 3 AM. Thanks to the help of the Oregon Department of Transportation and our crew of 5 heavy duty recovery technicians, we were able to provide heavy duty towing services and haz-mat cleanup with ease.
Details of Heavy Towing Service Needed for Vac Truck Recovery & Cleanup Job
Puddle Jumper’s heavy duty towing team received a call around 5:30 PM after a vacuum truck blew a front steering tire, running off the road and down a steep embankment. The heavy duty towing crew responded to the scene along north I-5 in Cottage Grove, Oregon.
The heavy towing service made contact with the driver and learned that he had been traveling at highway speed when the front tire went out. Although he tried to stay in the lane, steering became impossible. The driver hit over 200 feet of guard rail which eventually gave out and caused the driver to drive over and down a steep embankment. 20-30 trees were taken out in the midst of the accident.
Fortunately, the Puddle Jumper heavy duty towing team was on call and ready to help. Our heavy towing team knew immediately that this job would pose a challenge due to the damages the truck incurred, as well as the roots and trees in the way.
The heavy duty towing crew determined that the front axle had been completely ripped out by the trees and was found sitting below the cab of the truck. Other damages included the cab, the missing wheels, the motor, the battery box, the fuel tank, and several other components.
Puddle Jumper’s heavy duty towing team called in a tree truck to dig a trench to eliminate some of the trees and roots around the vacuum truck before proceeding. Due to the weight of the vacuum truck at approximately 50-60,000 lbs, the heavy duty towing crew opted to use multiple wreckers to pull the truck up the embankment.
First, the heavy towing team attached winch hooks from the V103 50-ton wrecker and the 16-ton medium duty wrecker to the vacuum truck. An additional 16-ton medium duty wrecker had a winch line attached while still on the Interstate to ensure that the vac truck did not rollover during the recovery.
Slowly and carefully, the vac truck made its way back to the road, pulling copious amounts of dirt, trees, and roots with it. This was cleared away before the heavy duty towing team loaded the broken axles and truck parts onto a flatbed tow truck for hauling away from the scene.
Before the heavy duty towing company could consider the job complete, haz-mat control and cleanup solutions were required. As approximately 20 to 30 gallons of diesel fuel spilled, as well as about 12 gallons of motor oil, the ground was treated to alleviate the harmful effects.
Finally, the heavy duty towing team completed the job around 3 AM. With the help of the Oregon Department of Transportation and the crew of 5 heavy duty towing and recovery technicians, the job went off without a hitch.