Lowdown

Got Loose Dunnage?

By John Borowski

Since 2015, John Borowski has been responsible for establishing, maintaining mutual understanding and cooperation within the towing industry and AutoReturn. With over 45 years of experience in the towing industry he is a well-known industry expert and trainer. John has held key positions for tow truck manufacturers. He was awarded the first “Towman of the Year” by American Towman magazine in 2005 and inducted in the Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame in 2001. He owned his own tow company for 19 years and was the largest municipal tower in the northeast.

Note: WPTV in Florida was sourced for photos and facts used in this article.

Inside of the vehicle struck by grid which fell off the moving tow truck.

Realizing that we are nine months into this Covid-19 Pandemic, people are not as aware as they usually are, that of course includes our tow operators. There has definitely been an uptick of preventable accidents, however, not everyone is focused on the task they’re performing because of all of the daily distractions that we now have.

Recently, in Del-Ray Beach, Florida a tower with a flatbed had his grid slide off the right rear tow bar and never knew it. The grid going down I-95 at about 70mph is an extremely dangerous thing as it weights 40 lbs. (It has a cost of about $400 plus shipping). State Police and Highway Patrols across the nation are looking to clamp down on this problem called loose dunnage.

According to the driver, Eduardo Medina, said only pieces of glass fell on him after the metal object busted through the windshield of his truck.

Florida Highway Patrol believes the road debris fell off of a flatbed tow truck that was driving on Medina’s right side. Medina hit the brakes and stopped in the middle of the interstate, while the tow truck driver kept driving down the highway. Medina added that he is grateful no one was hurt. ◀

Outside look at the damaged caused by loosed dunnage.

This is just one story as these occurrences are happening daily out there. It’s not only tow grids but many other things. How many times have you seen a mattress on the roadside? If a mattress is transported in a pickup and not properly secured, once the wind catches it, it’s gone.

Operators need to understand the serious nature of this issue.”

Let’s look closer at this topic. Anything coming off that truck on the roadway is not only the responsibility of the operator ◀

but ultimately the company owner. Had Eduardo not been as lucky as he was, he could have been killed.

This can get very expensive. Grid $400.00, totaled car $30,000, loss of license? loss of job? loss of life? I know the memory of killing or injuring somebody is not something I could live with over shear laziness.

There is a definite need to remind the operators about loose dunnage. All items on the outside of the truck should be secured. Brooms, shovels, chain, wooden blocks, etc. Anything and everything needs to be secured. Operators need to understand the serious nature of this issue.

The issue with the wheel lift grid is that the grid on tow bars are made to slide in and out across the tow bar. The factory has a built lock that is spring loaded and locks before sliding off the end of the bar.

Anything coming off that truck on the roadway is not only the responsibility of the operator but ultimately the company owner.

Where the problem occurs is that there is a locking bolt that stops it from sliding and simply should be snugged after every adjustment.

Loaded or unloaded, drivers either forget or don’t understand that the grid can go to the edge of the bar if the built-in lock doesn’t function anymore (whether because dirt and grease build up or the spring clip is no longer reaching the holes to lock). If this happens, you are driving down the road with a 40 lb chunk of steel ready to fly away on the next corner or bump.

Many towers who work the tow bar a lot realize the problem and usually run a bungee cord from grid to grid on the lock bolt in case they forget to snug the lock bolt. This is a quick and easy fix to an extremely dangerous problem. Some towers take and weld a small and short piece of chain to prevent the grid from reaching the end of the tow bar as it’s not like you remove them regularly.

Take the time to discuss this at your next safety meeting. You could be saving someone’s life as well as the future of the company.