Original subtitles

This time on Highway Thru Hell...

This is just going to be ugly.

...rocking the rollover...

She's a little heavy.

...a fresh team...

It's smokin'.

...over the edge...

No!

That's not good.

...Jamie...

Back end's going over.

...holds on...

Whoa, that's tippy, eh?

...and Aggressive...

Hold on, hold on.

...gets down and dirty.

Holy!

On southern British Columbia's Highway 3...

...truckers navigate the twisting route...

...through the Cascade Mountains.

Anybody who's travelled Highway 3

knows it's a switchback area.

Rock face on one side,

then there's a cliff on the other.

Very narrow roads.

...but as daylight fades...

...30 minutes south of Princeton...

Heading to the mess

in a Reliable Towing pickup...

Speed is a lot of the factor around here.

...Merritt regional manager Laine Paré...

If you're not coming down that hill right,

somebody's gonna get hurt.

This is my backyard.

I like to be one of those guys

that makes sure that we're up there

cleaning the roads up.

Let's go!

...following in Reliable's 35-tonne heavy,

Big Blue...

Got a call from the RCMP, like, an hour ago.

...junior operator Josh Bunce.

We're just trying to get there

as quick as we can.

I come from a mining background,

and it's got a lot of similarities with towing.

I always admired the tow trucks,

and I always thought the wreckers

were very impressive pieces of equipment.

Yo! Man, this sucks.

This is just going to be ugly.

Okay...

Also on scene, another Reliable 35-tonne,

with junior operator Keelan Weldring.

This is my first rollover and recovery at night.

What a bunch of carnage.

Right?

It is on its side, totally blocking the road.

She's a little heavy.

This is a fully loaded trailer.

The cargo is produce,

mainly apples.

With the wreck

blocking both lanes of the highway...

Okay.

...the team needs to act fast.

We want to get the truck

off the road as quick as we can,

so everybody can carry on with their life.

On Highway 3...

...the pressure's on...

Concerning, right?

...for Team Reliable to clear a semi

blocking the road.

Okay...

It is a very critical artery

from Vancouver to Alberta.

Definitely priority right now

is to get the trailer out of the way

and get the lanes open.

Half an hour earlier,

the fully loaded semi

lost control...

...slamming into the rock face...

...before rolling over.

We're gonna pull the trailer

away from the truck.

The quickest way to clear the highway...

Drag it right off the road.

Sweet.

...is to do it one piece at a time.

I wanna get Big Blue straight on right here.

Okay.

We're gonna hook up Big Blue,

and hopefully just drag the trailer

off to the side of the road.

Okay.

Bring it back.

Right here, bud.

We ran a snatch block

just to make sure we were doubling our pulling power.

You guys ready?

Give 'er.

Laine takes on the controls...

See if we're separating.

...so Josh...

Okay!

...can be his eyes on the kingpin.

Okay, hold on?

Go slow.

This trailer is fully loaded,

and it seems very heavy.

Yup, they're separated!

Okay.

Whoa!

With the loaded trailer

weighing 45,000 pounds...

We're gonna get you to...

Turn around?

Turn around

and be pointed towards the front of this.

...Laine opts to clear it off the road...

-Then we'll see what we can do. -Okay.

...before they figure out how to right it.

Because there's so much weight in the trailer...

That's good, Josh!

...we need to find the best angle to pull the trailer out.

There's holes right here.

Pass me that chain?

Soft strap around the front.

Strong enough?

I think I'm gonna double it up

if I got enough chain.

Oh, yeah.

Boom.

Cool.

I want somebody on that end

to just watch the trailer.

Yeah.

And then I want somebody on that end

to watch the trailer, okay?

I'm worried we may rip the trailer in half...

The integrity is what we're worried about.

...because all the weight is pushing on it

'cause it's not sitting upright any longer.

Okay, here we go, boys!

Okay!

'Kay.

Keep going, yep!

Just making sure that the trailer moves as one unit...

'cause we don't want it to break up.

Yeah, it's all moving as one!

Yep!

Smokin'.

...but as the trailer

inches off the road...

No!

Hang on!

180 kilometres west...

...on Highway 1...

...a green 50-tonne is on the move...

Just another night on the Highway 1.

...with Al Quiring at the wheel.

Fifth-wheel pin came disconnected somehow.

I'm heading out onto the highway

for a trailer disconnect from a tractor.

The semi was travelling at speed...

Something happened.

...when the trailer separated.

Probably made some sparks, I bet.

It's definitely clear that it came disconnected...

...and fell off the back of the truck.

It's a lot better

than being flipped over on its side,

that's for sure.

Maybe when it pinned in, it didn't pin in right.

With rush hour just starting,

Al needs to remove the dangerous distraction.

The traffic is horrendous out there,

backed up everywhere on the highway.

As good a night as any to plant potatoes.

With the front of the trailer flat on the road,

it's pretty hard to get a chain underneath the trailer.

Al is forced to feel his way in

to hook his chains...

I've towed many, many broken trailers.

It's just a process of getting the chains set up...

...and that'll give me enough

that I can pick the front of the trailer up.

...but as he finally lifts the trailer...

...a closer look...

Whoa!

...reveals

the trailer is severely compromised.

The trailer frame is completely broken.

This is gonna become a real issue.

Need to haul this unit off the highway.

Just gonna have a look in the trailer

before we lift it right up.

I'm gonna have to see

what the actual load consists of,

and see how much weight is on the front of that trailer.

At this point,

we're hoping maybe we can just get it

down to the parking lot here.

A tow man's worst nightmare,

it's got a full load,

and the trailer frame is broken.

Oh...

Are you kidding me?

Rush hour in the Fraser Valley...

Oh...

What is this?

A dropped trailer...

It's fragile, whatever it is.

...has Al in a delicate situation.

You don't want to see the big "fragile" sign.

The load is ceramic tiles

weighing 80,000 pounds.

My mom always said I was a bull in a china shop...

And I see that, and it's like, "Whoa...

just close the doors."

To get the compromised trailer

off the road...

We're just gonna slide the axles at the back.

...Al will need to use

every trick he has up his sleeve.

It's the power of will.

See if we can get the axles underneath it a little.

We're gonna move the wheels forward

underneath the trailer a little bit

so it's carrying more weight.

Yeah, going, going, going, going.

We only gotta go a couple feet,

but it's sliding.

Yeah.

Transferring it more onto the wheels

than the tow truck end where it's broken.

Yeah, we're locked?

With the pressure of traffic building...

All's we can do is try our best...

...because we only got one time to lift it.

...Al gambles on the trailer holding together.

Like a house of cards.

Just be very ginger when you're making your moves.

Uh-oh.

Two hours east...

Hang on!

...on Highway 3...

What's the problem?

...Reliable's tipped semi...

The door buckled in.

...threatens to spill its load.

And it started to open that more,

and then the whole door just...

This load definitely needs to be unloaded.

The trailer's just going to break apart.

On a hairpin bend,

the semi lost control,

smashing into the rock face,

and flipping onto its side.

I'll watch right here.

Offloading the cargo now

will take hours...

...but with the wreck

still blocking the highway...

I think I'm gonna keep going.

Laine...

risks it all.

You have to do what you have to do

to get it open.

Easy!

Okay!

Okay.

With the trailer off the road...

We're good.

It gives enough room

that both lanes of traffic can actually continue.

I think we ought to disconnect,

and we'll go and focus on the truck now.

Okay.

This truck is broken in three places,

so there's no real structural frame to grab.

We'll grab from the rear axle,

we'll grab from the spring hanger there.

Absolutely. I like it.

Okay.

The plan is to get this tractor back on its wheels,

hooked up to a tow truck,

towed out of the way.

We just need all this stuff out of these live lanes

right now.

I'll start feeding it through the holes on the rim

if you could just help me make a loop.

Yup.

Just make sure

that your hook isn't in the bite.

Okay.

When this sucker comes back over, right?

Yup.

Okay, here we go, boys!

Keep going!

There it went.

Hell, yeah, bro!

Okay.

Pretty exciting...

to see it land on its wheels.

Good!

Next thing we'll do, Josh,

is get you right up in here somewhere

where we can just drag this thing off the road.

With a quick re-rig...

Good?

-Yup. -Okay.

...the tractor...

You taking your truck for a walk?

Yeah.

Got a little leash on it?

...is off the highway.

Traffic control on 3,

tow trucks are off the road.

You copy that?

In 90 minutes...

...Highway 3 is moving again...

Very impressed with everybody's work.

...but the job is only half done.

That'll get unloaded in the morning

during the daylight.

I think it's the safest.

For now...

We're pretty well good to go, I think.

-Hell, yeah. -Yeah.

...the newest Reliable members

call it a day.

I love working with Keelan

and Laine.

Fearless leader. Let's go.

Good work, man.

Thank you. Good work.

Really good.

I'm proud to be on this team.

It's always exciting for me

when we bring on a whole new group of people.

On Highway 1...

Uh-oh.

...Al's fragile trailer...

This thing is buggered.

...has started to give way.

Pick something up that's broken,

and you're gonna hear settling, crumpling, banging.

Saving the 80,000-pound load...

We'll fix that!

...will require some roadside engineering.

We're just gonna chain the underneath

with, uh, a truss.

I'm hoping I can get it picked up.

To reinforce the trailer,

Al will use blocks to support the frame

and a chain to secure it in place,

while he attempts to tow it down the road...

Think in your mind what you need to do,

and use the equipment

that you have available with you.

Okay, tighten 'er up.

There you go, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Whew!

...but the true test...

Okay, here we go.

...will be transporting

the fragile cargo...

Come on, sweetheart.

...14 kilometres...

Heave ho.

...back to the yard.

My biggest concern

is we're one big bump away from-- "Krrr!"

a mosaic, anywhere.

You can't really see it,

but I've got a tight grip on my seat.

We'll just take our time.

We're tap dancing here.

I'd rather just be a couple extra minutes,

be cautious...

Long as we don't hit a big bump,

we should make it to the yard.

Easy, easy, easy...

After 25 long minutes...

Right on, happy landing.

...Al finally eases the trailer into homebase.

We always look forward to getting that load

over the county line

when we pull into the yard.

Beauty.

Every day is a challenge.

That's what I enjoy

is the diversity of the recovery business.

We made it home for dinner.

The next day,

back on Highway 3...

Reliable Towing's heavy metal

is on the move...

Going up to a rolled-over trailer.

...with lead operator Andy Cullum.

Laine and Josh had taken care of the tractor.

I'm gonna come up

and take care of the trailer for them.

Hours earlier...

That one goes there.

...50,000 pounds of apples...

You're just building, middle out.

..were removed from the trailer.

Beautiful, beautiful.

Now...

I see a trailer on its side

right on the side of the road.

...Andy gets his first look

at the emptied trailer.

Let's go have a look.

Mmm, apple pie.

The door is toast.

Trailer's looking kinda rough.

That's not going to be very nice.

If you get it wrong,

the box could crumble

and end up across the highway.

Nobody told me it was this bad.

On Highway 3...

The whole wall's messed up.

...Andy's in a solo face-off...

Nasty.

...with a beaten-up trailer.

The back door got pretty ripped up.

When we stand this up, it could fall apart.

Being the flagship truck guy...

...you're the person they call on

to solve all their big issues...

I'm working by myself.

...but when you're out alone,

you need to be on it.

You holding?

But to recover the trailer...

...he'll need to shut down the highway.

There's always a crunch on time.

You don't wanna block the highway

any longer than needed.

With a line to the top of the frame

and a line to the rear axles...

Andy starts the pull.

Whoo, look at that.

Wasn't too bad.

Roll went good.

Nice and quick.

Fun times.

In less than 10 minutes...

You can let 'em go both ways.

...the highway is reopened.

Now we're gonna hook to the front of the trailer

and get it off the highway.

Perfect.

Nice.

Nothin' to it.

Looks not too bad.

We're strapping the door,

'cause the door frame is not so much a frame anymore.

The two-day recovery...

...is finally done.

It's not just one person or two people.

It's our whole team work together.

I'm really proud of the people we have.

Everybody's starting to help out in the business.

It's good to see it.

Let's go home now.

580 kilometres north-east...

...in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains...

...a lone 4X4 wrecker...

It's quite a ways up there.

...and Jamie Davis

are in search of a wreck.

It's deep, this snow.

The off-road jobs can be quite interesting.

You don't know what's going to happen.

Ten kilometres into the bush,

Jamie arrives to a luxury motorhome

teetering on the edge.

It's kind of straddled the ditch

on the right side,

so it's got a lean to it.

Hello.

The vehicle's owners...

Hi.

...are tourists visiting from Europe.

I come slowly, and I don't see the ice,

then from one second to the other second

is go right,

and then it's finished.

You'll get people from out of town,

or travellers that will go on the back roads,

and that will become really treacherous for them.

This one.

He's done a good job

of making sure his campervan doesn't flip over.

But while the owner's makeshift rigging

impresses Jamie...

I think we could take this off.

Afraid he fall.

You afraid it's gonna fall?

Afraid, yeah, afraid.

Yeah, I think we have to undo, if we can.

...it's time for the professional

to go to work.

You just need the right tool for the job.

-Okay. -Thanks.

-I'll hold that. -Okay.

I'm gonna plow by a little bit,

and then I'll back up.

Okay.

Okay?

They've shipped this unit from Switzerland.

It's their prize possession,

so it's really important to pull this unit out

and let them carry on their trip.

Now in position,

Jamie can start hooking up...

We're going to pull on two points

so that we're steering it back on the road

and bringing it out at the same time.

...but rigging to the $200,000 camper...

It's plastic.

...is a delicate operation.

Yeah, it's not good.

They're made to look pretty,

they don't have heavy rigging or pull points...

Jamie rigs a round sling

to the rear axle...

If you don't do the right things,

you could have more damage.

Just around like this one...

...but for the second pull point...

Then we'll put the block in there.

...Jamie turns to his surroundings.

We'll put this in there.

Yeah.

We've got some really good trees.

We can redirect the angle of our pull

using snatch blocks.

Okay, locked on. Chain's good?

Yeah, okay.

Tow pin is a little bit weak,

but we will try.

Weighing over 8,000 pounds,

Jamie gambles on his rig point.

Hopefully it doesn't break.

A lot of weight in this unit.

I'm a little bit nervous

on the front tow pin being strong enough.

They're not meant for pulling on sideways.

Okay.

Hold it, yeah.

He's steering the unit

in the right direction...

Okay.

...so that we can bring that front end over.

Yeah, we have to be careful a little bit.

Oh.

The tree's starting to realize the weight that's on it.

I'm a little nervous.

I don't want the tree coming down.

The driver's wife...

...spots a problem.

Yeah, I see, I see...

Back end's going over. Oh, oh...

Oh, oh...

On a backcountry road...

I don't want to do any more on that one...

...a high-end camper...

...so we'll stop.

...threatens to topple over.

We'd better stop

before we do end up flipping this thing over.

It's coming up here. I don't like that.

We need to get a different tree.

The angle that we're pulling on

is lifting the back end of the van up

and wanting to tip it over.

There?

Yeah, we gotta go to that tree.

Okay.

We've gotta re-rig it

so that the angle that we're pulling on

is gonna pull down, not up.

Satisfied with the new pull angle...

Just hold on the brakes for a minute.

Okay.

...Jamie and the driver

restart the pull.

Okay. I'll pull 'em out.

Let 'em in neutral now.

Yeah. Okay.

Ooh, that's tippy, eh?

A little bit more.

What do you think?

Are we on the road?

After a quick inspection...

Yeah, it's on the road.

...the luxury camper is out of the ditch.

It really makes me feel good

to give them a hand,

and without any damage.

The customer's doing all the hard work.

But before they leave...

Yeah.

You could get on as a swamper.

Oh! Okay.

...the owner chips in one last time.

You know, he's hands on. Perfect.

Now we go back to Halifax.

With more than 5,000 kilometres to go...

For now shipping to Hamburg.

...the couple can continue on their journey.

Now, danke, it's good.

I really enjoy

the off-road, back woods kind of recovery jobs.

Jamie goes the extra mile...

You just do your work, get it done,

and it's all good.

...plowing the road on his way out.

600 kilometres southwest...

...in the Fraser Valley...

...a 50-tonne rotator

heads to an early evening call...

We're on our way.

...with Aggressive Towing's

Chris Mervyn...

We're gonna head into Chilliwack today

with a customer

that unfortunately has his truck in the ditch.

When you enjoy your job,

you don't really work a day in your life.

Four or five years ago, it was me getting all those calls.

As I stepped back, Merv stepped up.

Hot on his heels

in a 50-tonne wrecker...

Oh, accidents happen every day.

...junior heavy operator Jaydan Dick.

I'm running Merv's old 50-tonne now.

Definitely a lot of pressure.

There's a lot more that can go wrong.

20 minutes ahead...

...the wreck...

...is deep in the ditch.

This roadway is actually a busy thoroughfare

to get to the upper side of Chilliwack.

Oh, damn.

As daylight fades...

Definitely in there pretty good.

...Team Aggressive arrives on scene.

Hmm.

Not a lot of real estate.

Yeah, tons of fun.

It's a very narrow roadway we're dealing with.

Not gonna have much outrigger out, either.

No.

Overall, not much room to play with.

...but this wreck...

We're looking at a roll-off truck in the ditch.

...is no ordinary dump truck.

With a roll-off truck,

they can actually roll the bin on and off.

This is going to be a big problem.

It definitely is a specialized vehicle.

Hopefully that'll hold up.

It's not something that you can really yank on

or pull on too hard.

The unit...

The worst part is,

eventually it's just gonna be a sharp drop-off

and a sploosh.

...is sitting in a foot of water.

It's a very deep ditch.

It has definitely got water flowing in the bottom of it.

Holy!

Man, it's like "All good, all good, all good, all bad."

In the Fraser Valley...

...on a narrow stretch of road...

Is she empty or loaded?

...Merv and Jaydan...

Empty.

...face a specialized roll-off truck

stuck in a waterway.

It's fully in the ditch,

on its side, pretty much.

Oh, hold on, Big Rig.

Good enough.

I don't think your boots

are gonna help you in that.

Yeah, no.

I'm not a huge fan of water.

I don't really like swimming or being wet.

Okay, so this cable goes to this rail.

Working in tight quarters...

That way when I swing my boom,

it comes out proper, yeah.

...Merv takes full advantage

of his rotating boom.

We're looking to keep a lane of traffic open at least...

...and the rotator just makes it easy to achieve that.

Hey, come hold the snatch block.

I'll pop the ring up.

Yup.

With the 50-tonne pulling the front,

and the rotator lifting the back,

they'll coax the truck out of the ditch.

Try one,

we'll see if we can start making that come up.

We got that shackle sideloaded pretty good.

With 16,000 pounds on the line...

Watch your head. It may go flying.

Okay.

...all eyes are on their rigging...

Fighting the bank on the way up

adds a lot of extra strain to the winch cables.

Keep going.

...but as they winch

against the bank...

...the wreck...

...threatens to tip.

Okay, hold on.

I do not want to make the phone call

to say it rolled over.

You want that second line on, or...?

I think what I wanna do

is put a grey strap on it

and come around the back side of the bin.

We're gonna wrap a strap around it

just to give it a little more support.

We'll chuck that up and over.

This truck's probably worth, you know, $150,000.

I can't see the other side.

We wanna make sure

this thing comes up on its wheels

and stays on its wheels the whole time.

But rigging to the other side...

Argh! I'm the wreck monster.

...means someone

has to brave the water-filled ditch.

I'm so getting wet.

Oh, that's cold.

Yep, mm-hmm.

Being the junior guy on scene,

I've got to get down and dirty when I have to.

That's really freaking cold water.

Oh my.

Yeah, it's not gonna be warm water.

Man...

Cold water builds character.

I have more than enough character.

I don't need to be in that cold water.

Okay, send 'er to the moon.

-Ready? -Yeah.

We don't call 'em swampers for nothing.

Back to work!

With the extra line now in place...

Pull a little bit here.

Pull a little bit?

Yeah.

...they begin round two.

Keep coming?

But as the roll-off truck...

Yeah, keep going.

...makes its way up the bank...

It's plowing a lot

because we're bringing it up a very steep angle.

That's all bound up.

We're definitely adding resistance.

Hey.

We're pulling.

Hold on, hold on.

On a narrow roadway...

...a 16,000-pound truck...

Hold on, hold on.

...has Team Aggressive

bogged down.

I can make my end come up no problem,

but yours is a fight right now.

Just with the way we're pulling,

it wants to pull the nose through the bank.

To encourage the wreck to roll forward

instead of sideways...

Pull forward five more feet.

...Jaydan...

...repositions his 50-tonne...

We'll try rolling 'er up and out now.

We need to get it on such of an angle

where the tire starts riding up the dirt.

Tell me when.

Yeah.

Keep pulling a little bit more.

Pull 'er up a little bit here.

As the first wheel...

Yeah, keep going like that.

...claws its way onto pavement...

Almost there, buddy.

Hold it.

What we should do,

switch that to the other side now that we're up here.

...a final re-rig...

Okay.

Give 'er.

...and Jaydan...

...pulls the second wheel...

We're on the money.

...back up onto firm ground...

Okay, Dicky Bird, get out of there.

...leaving the rest to Merv and his rotator.

There we go.

Watching Merv do something like this

is pretty interesting.

Probably pretty close to your truck,

so let's go take a look at that.

It can be a difficult maneuver

picking in one end of the truck

and swinging it between two.

Whoo-hoo-hoo!

Hell, yeah, brother.

Yeah, she's ready to load.

Almost. It's like...

Almost.

The customer will probably be pretty happy

that it stayed in one piece.

I always enjoy working with Merv.

Everything went smoothly,

and the truck's out of the ditch.

Good job, homie.

I'll see you back at the yard.

Jaydan went swimming. He did awesome.

Definitely nice

one day maybe having my own swamper.

Days later...

...at Aggressive Towing's headquarters...

You've still got four hydraulic lines

that's gotta be undone and fed through.

...Merv...

Just checking to make sure I've got everything.

...and Jaydan...

...make sure the Aggressive fleet

is ready to launch at a moment's notice.

Critical that we...

we're not down a bunch of trucks.

Past few years, for sure, work-life balance has changed.

Hi!

How are you?

Aggressive boss Jason Davis...

has been stepping back

from the gritty part of the family business.

Merv's now

the forefront person that goes out...

Just checking everything.

...and, you know, the Jaydans are coming up in the world.

The time that I missed spending

with my kids growing up,

I can spend that time with my grandkids for sure.

Heads up!

It's nice to know that your team

is ready to go anytime.

Yeah!

You can rely on them to do whatever.

Awesome.

Yeah, it's... it's perfect, it's great.

Lunch break!

Next time on Highway Thru Hell...

Something burning?

...in deep...

Careful, careful.

...Merv...

No way.

...tests the waters.

Crushed...

...on the Coq...

It's friggin' frigged.

...with Team Reliable...

Wow!

...and moving day...

Sounds really good.

...for Jamie's precious.

-There? -That's it!