'Avoid those muddy roads': P.E.I. tow truck company says vehicles getting stuck
'Crunching the numbers, it looks as if we've been getting anywhere from five to 10 winch calls per day'
It's been a busy spring for staff at Shaw's Towing on P.E.I. who say they've seen many calls from Islanders needing to be towed out of the mud.
"Crunching the numbers, it looks as if we've been getting anywhere from five to 10 winch calls per day over the last two weeks or so. It's definitely above what I've seen compared to last spring," said Matt Sentner who works at the towing company.
A winch call involves a tow truck driver using a winch cable to hook their truck onto another vehicle.
'Vehicles pretty much sink'
A lot of the calls are coming from Islanders who've managed to get stuck in muddy back roads, said Sentner.
"They're getting into situations where it doesn't look so bad but once they get into it their vehicle's pretty much sink. Once they're in they can't really get out," Sentner said.
The job isn't always easy, Sentner said, sometimes in retrieving cars from the mud the tow trucks also get stuck in the process.
"Occasionally it does happen. Not very often but sometimes, you know, the situation can get very muddy," he said.
This is Sentner's second year working as a dispatcher for Shaw's Towing and he says the number of calls this year, so far, has been surprising.
It depends on when the snow melts but typically the company responds to these kinds of calls from the middle of March to the middle of May, he said.
For now, Sentner advises Islanders to "avoid those muddy roads."
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With files by Sarah MacMillan