Icy conditions keep tow truck drivers busy

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The icy mess on the roads has kept tow truck drivers busy across our area since the snow started falling Tuesday afternoon.
 
Some drivers crashed.  Other drivers spun and slipped.  Even more ended up just plain stuck like John Focacci.
 
"I wound up going to work, tried to use the four-wheel drive to get out of the ice and the car just wouldn't go out of the four-wheel drive started grinding and smoked up on me," said Focacci.
 
He didn't want to break down in the middle of the road so he pulled over just in time and called AAA for help.
 
The AAA call center is in Roanoke Rapids in eastern North Carolina.  Channel 9 learned overall the call volume has actually been pretty low because most people decided to stay off the roads.
 
AAA tow truck driver Bryan Phillips came to Foccaci's rescue.  He said most of the calls he responded to have been people sliding off the road or into ditches.
 
"They have been calls where people have been stuck," Phillips said.
 
Since the freezing temperatures are keeping the icy conditions in place, AAA drivers are leaving the stranded cars in place and dropping their owners off in a safe location instead.
 
"I didn't expect a ride.  I was going to have my wife drive 40 minutes to get me but he's been great said he'd give me a ride to wherever I needed to go," Focacci said.
 
As the winter chill continues to keep an icy grip on the area, tow truck drivers are expecting to see more of the same Thursday.

WSOC