Saving Money, Saving Lives

When the weather service issues a winter advisory warning, most people find excuses to stay off the roads. For Al Quiring and his team, the day — or night — is only beginning. As one of the most prominent heavy vehicle recovery and rescue companies in British Columbia, Quiring Towing races into the heart of the largest, most formidable storms.

The drivers have to move quickly. It’s much more than one vehicle at risk. The Coq and other highways in the area are used by thousands of vehicles daily. Each includes countless overpasses, narrow corridors and steep declines, so a single incident can bog down traffic for hours, for miles. With temperatures plummeting to -30ºC, tragedy awaits those stranded for too long.

“Even a small incident like a minor tire explosion can be catastrophic,” said Al Quiring, Owner of Quiring Towing. “If it’s snowing and it prevents snowplows from coming through, things are going to get much worse quickly.”

Quiring Towing drivers are at risk, too — if they’re unable to see the roads. For many years, the team used halogen headlights. But they needed to be replaced often, sometimes on the side of the highway. The lights were also a large power draw, often shorting out or even causing fires on overworked electrical systems and batteries.

“Ice is the worst though,” said Quiring. “Whether it be ice, snow or sleet, you had to stop the truck and wipe the headlights clean on narrow two-lane roads in mountain passes, where other vehicles, falling rocks, avalanches and even cougars and bears can be a problem.”
The alternative was to keep driving with iced-over headlights that impaired the driver’s vision.