Entertainment - Entertainment News

POSTED: Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2009

Kerry Ratzlaff: Towing company owner does his best to help, in any weather

Kerry Ratzlaff, 44, hasn't been sleeping much lately. The owner of Berk's Towing in Lynden has been working long hours pulling submerged cars, semi-trucks, snowplows and emergency vehicles during the recent snowstorms and flooding.

Here's his story, in his own words:

"I have been towing since I was 15. I started working for Berk in 1987 while I was going to college. I bought the company in 1996. 2010 will be our 50th anniversary. "A good tow truck driver has the ability to see what they are doing and how everything is going to be impacted by what they do. We are here to help people. A lot of people call me a janitor because I clean up other people's messes. The life of a tow truck driver is (dictated by) when people need you, not when we choose. Not 9 to 5. In general, we are trying to take care of other people's issues in a manner they would expect.

"There was one semi stuck on I-5 in the median, stuck in the mud. That was very recent. A garbage truck (crashed) in a house on Toad Lake Road. It was in a house, overhanging the foundation. We had to utilize other support people to help us. Whatcom County put a hold on removing the truck until they could demolish part of the house.

"It (working the recent storms) was very intense, long hours. Anywhere from 12-18 hours a day for at least the last three weeks. Sometimes with just a 3- to 4-four (hour) rest, with the phone ringing all the way in between. Lots of frustrated people trying to get taken care of. The waits were quite long. It was very difficult to staff. We are not used to [such a] huge call volume. There were lots of areas like Sudden Valley we couldn't even access. At different times throughout the year it is like that, but not three to four weeks (straight). Not day after day after day.

"Sometimes dealing with the families of victims that come to the yard is more difficult to get through than being at the accident scene. And you are trying to help them through their tough time. At lot of people ask us, 'did they pass quickly' and no one knows. We are usually there after (they die). Some people don't want to see their loved ones' vehicles. Most do. It helps with closure. It helps with me as well. I have lost some friends as well.

"Where people are crushed by machinery or a vehicle and having to pull that off of them, it certainly makes you realize you are always moments away from death. You try to make sure you are watching out for other people out on the road while you are working. Makes you feel a little different when you see the DOT (Department of Transportation) or other people working out on the road. You try to give them as much space as you dare. You are there to do a job and if you have to think about it, that can wait till later. I just reflect back to my faith and believe someone is looking out for me.

"I enjoy the variety and the ability to help a lot of people. The goal is to help more people than to hinder them. You get to met some great people and help them through their tough time, whether it be a flat tire or stuck in the mud.

"Barney is a big, super-heavy-duty-tow purple truck. I just bought the truck and parked in my driveway. Told my wife it doesn't really fit my blue and white colors and asked my wife what to call it, and my little girl, Sydney, said 'It's Barney, of course.'

"It's been Barney ever since. When people call who deal with us on a regular basis, they ask for it by name.

"'Don't bring a little one, bring Barney.'"