Loved Highway Thru Hell? – Learn 15 Exciting Facts!

Have you seen Highway Thru Hell?

The Canadian documentary focuses on uncertain weather, rescue operations, life-threatening situations, grim reality, and fierce competition.

Highway thru hell is a Canadian television reality show featuring tow driver Jamie Davis, his rescuing team, and his business competitors.

The show revolves around Jamie Davis’s determination and bold attitude toward his towing company. Jamie Davis owns a towing company named Jamie Davis Motor Truck & Auto.

His competitors in the business are Quiring Towing, Mission Towing, Aggressive Towing, and Reliable Towing. The show highway thru hell focuses on the harsh reality of the towing business.

The unforeseeable weather, changing topography, and daily risks are taken to fulfill the job on one of the most dangerous roads, especially in winter, the Coquihalla Highway, in Southern British Columbia, Canada.

Highway Thru Hell: 15 Exciting Facts

Well, here are curated 15 details about the documentary that will make you watch the show.

1. The Hell Way

The documentary Highway thru hell reflects on the adversity of rescuing on highways in the interiors of British Columbia.

The prime focus of the show is on the Coquihalla highway, abbreviated as The Coq, in Southern British Columbia, Canada.

Coquihalla highway or Highway 5 is a 543.3 km long highway. It is the shortest land connection between Vancouver and Calgary.

The coq highway connects the Southern trans-Canada route to the Northern trans-Canada route.

A 200 km long part of the Coquihalla highway is considered one of the most dangerous and hostile roads to drive during winter. Summers are still fine.

The weather is unpredictable. It can change from cloudy to stormy to blizzard-like in less than 20 minutes.

Jamie Davis and his team rescue the vehicles and handle all the operations in whatever weather conditions to keep the traffic going. It is one of the most frequently used highways by travelers.

Highway Thru Hell
source: Shutterstock

2. The Insight of Towing Business

Jamie Davis wanted to change public opinion about his work and the towing industry from the beginning. ‘Highway thru hell’ successfully brings to public attention the towing business’s reality and importance.

How does it work? What does it take to rescue in such extreme conditions?

Instead of being reeled in, the highway through hell crew records the live rescue operations Jamie Davis and his team performed.

Towing is a 24/7 business, and so is the recording of highway thru hell. Whenever something thrilling pops up, The camera starts rolling and makes the audience watch the challenging side of the towing business.

3. Heavy Rescue Trucks

Powerful vehicles are required for such dangerous rescue operations as this. Jamie Davis Truck fleet includes Modern fleet, Coastline trucks, Holmes fleet, and others.

‘Highway thru hell’ catches the public’s attention with such a colossal truck fleet.

The show’s star is undoubtedly the rotator among all the breakdown lorries. The rotator is the most massive boom, having a capacity range starting from 30 tons up to 75 tons.

The real gem, The rotator, has been sold by Jamie Davis to Berg’s recovery in season 5 of highway thru hell. Watch the show to find out what led Jamie Davis to this decision.

Highway Thru Hell
source: Shutterstock

4. The Upswing in the Local Economy

The show has boosted the local economy of the village, Hope. Hope is a small town situated at the entrance of the Coquihalla highway.

Since 2012, when the show started, Hope has become a minor tourist attraction. People visit the village to see the highway and the yard.

The village has also received attention from various businesses after Highway Thru Hell went viral. This certainly boosted the rural economy.

The makers of Highway thru Hell also hired several residents to work on the show. With the show’s international success, the locals of Hope have benefitted.

5. The Voice Behind “Highway Thru Hell”

One of the most critical aspects of a story or documentary’s success and failure is its narration. The man behind the voice in Highway thru Hell is Dave Pettitt.

Dave Pettitt is a Canadian actor who has worked in the broadcasting industry, television, and commercials.

Dave has done voiceovers for many games and shows. He provided the voice for Dragon Balls and Dragon balls GT.

He narrated the French game, Valiant heart: The Great War. He also described the twin series of Highway thru Hell, Heavy rescue: 401.

According to the situation, his vocal delivery, realistic approach, solemnity, and softness bring life to the show during narration.

Highway Thru Hell
source: Shutterstock

6. When, Where, and How Did ‘Highway Thru Hell’ Happen?

You guys might also wonder about How the Highway thru hell happened? Who approached whom? Well, the story appears a bit filmy rather than realistic.

The show Highway thru hell was created by Mark A. Miller, Kevin Mills, and Neil Thomas.

It all started with Neil Thomas’s truck breakdown on Highway 5. Coincidently, it was rescued by one of Jamie Davis Motor Truck & Auto employees.

After that, the idea was discussed with Jamie Davis. As mentioned earlier, Jamie always wanted to change public opinion about the towing industry.

He tried to draw the audience’s attention to the reality and hardship of the towing business.

After the show, highway thru hell, people started looking at the tow drivers. They come to know what they do and how they do it.

The show successfully fulfilled the root cause behind making the highway through hell.

7. The Offshoot

After the show’s massive success, highway thru hell, Mark A. Miller decided to create a spin-off television series, Heavy Vehicle Rescue: 401.

Just like Highway Through Hell. It is also a Canadian documentary. But it showcases the heavy rescue fight and towing operations in the Greater Toronto Area ( GTA), mostly highway 401, Ontario.

Apart from the tow rescue operators, Heavy rescue: 401 also talks about the support from the Ontario provincial police (OPP) and the Ministry of transport and management, Ontario, Canada.

The show was created in 2016. It has four seasons now, with 36 episodes. It was also broadcast on The Discovery Channel, Canada, and The Weather Channel.

Highway Thru Hell
source: Shutterstock

8. The Local Fame

Back in 2010, Jamie Davis was just like any other rescue operator doing his job in Canada. The show ‘highway thru hell’ changed his fate.

The show was a big hit. It was also ranked the No.1 on the discovery channel, Canada, for the first time in history.

Not just in Canada but also appreciated internationally. It was telecasted on other channels like The weather channel and Prosieben Maxx in Germany under Highway heroes Canada.

People started looking up to Jamie Davis, his team, and other rescue operators as the show became popular.

People recognize their big red trucks and wave to them in and outside the city. He also mentioned that people from different places visited the yard to see the fleet and other things.

9. Dealing With Emergencies

Rescuing on highways during harsh winters is not a cakewalk. Who knows it better than the tow drivers themselves?

Jamie Davis and his team remain prepared for sudden changes in weather and any emergency.

They always load their trucks with snacks, especially during long-distance towing.

They always carry a few extra blankets and snowshoes because the weather changes abruptly. As they never know when they might get stuck for hours?

Jamie Davis also mentioned in an interview that they fill gasoline tanks as soon as possible. If you’re planning to drive across mountains, carry all the essentials.

Highway Thru Hell
source: Shutterstock

10. The Making of “Highway Thru Hell”

The making of the highway thru hell is also compassionate at times. The crew also faces life-threatening situations while capturing the live rescue operations.

But Neil Thomas, executive producer, said in an interview, “It’s safety first, then the story.

Technology has evolved since. With drones, fixed cameras, GoPro cameras, and other things, it has become easier now.

The camera people and the entire crew have become more and more skilled over time.

Thomas said, “We’ve skipped entire scenes or stories because we felt it’s just not worth the risk to our guys. We’ll get the next one.”

And thrill never ends on highway thru hell.

11. The Emotional Crash

Jamie Davis has expanded his business in Alberta in the last two seasons. Jamie and his team daily encounter truck crashes, drifts, storms, and whatnot.

But in season 5, highway thru hell, you will see Jamie and his team facing a different crash, The emotional one.

Due to the economic recession, Davis has to return from Alberta to Hope, where he originally started.

In episode 1 of season 5, you will see Davis teary-eyed. Seeing a man like him in the situation will make you cry with him.

Season 5 is undoubtedly an emotional roller coaster for Davis, his team, and the audience.

When it comes to the best episode, any loyal fans will tell you to fly or fall team reliable is the best episode. It was episode 15 in season 10.

12. The Ambiguous Reality

Although highway thru hell showcases the real side of the towing industry, the makers tried to exaggerate the drama between the Quirings and Jamie Davis during season 1. Quiring and Jamie are competitors in the business.

In an interview, the Quiring family said it’s fallacious how they have been portrayed in the entire season 1.

It does bring a sort of hatred from fans towards them. This also results in the hesitation of a few clients towards them.

From season 2 onwards, the makers tried to portray a more healthy competition to dilute Quiring’s image, which had been fabricated previously.

13. The Challenges Crew Face

The job is challenging in itself. But filming the same comes with additional challenges.

While the tow drivers follow their regular working routine, the camerapersons and makers of “Highway Through Hell” shoot perilous situations. For the same reason, they need to be very careful and smart.

In one of their interviews, the makers mentioned that they frequently break recording equipment—all credit to the weather.

Sometimes they land up in distant places where they have zero network connectivity. The crew has learned to be self-reliant in those situations.

The more thrilling the operations, the more difficult the shooting is. Sometimes, they shoot them from weird angles, leading them to drop the entire scene. The proper camera angle is hard to achieve in those situations.

14. The Competition in the Business

Jamie Davis Motor Truck & Auto is not the only towing company in the area. There always was a competition, which intensified more during Season 2, highway thru hell.

The competitors in the same are Quiring towing, Mission Towing, Aggressive Towing, and Reliable towing.

Quiring towing is one of the longest-running families in the towing business. Al stepped into his father’s shoes, and now his son Cary is all set to take responsibility.

“Cary is working at taking over my job, which is perfect cause he grew up a kid in my truck the same way I grew up in my dad’s truck,” Al Quiring said in an interview.

Highway Thru Hell
source: Shutterstock

15. The Real Gem of “Highway Thru Hell”

Going to hell and back every day wasn’t enough of a challenge – Jamie Davis.

Highway thru hell starred many characters. But the real gem of the show is Jamie Davis, without any doubt.

Jamie Davis was born in 1962 in British Columbia. He learned how to operate trucks from his father at a very young age and entered the towing industry in 1979.

Since then, he has never looked back. Jamie still manages to get his job done at the earliest, whether it’s snow, rain, ice, storms, or whatnot. Whatever it takes, he is always there to do his job to keep the roads going.

This attitude of Davis makes him a legend. Not the legend of the show but the towing industry as well. He owns a company, Jamie Davis Truck & Auto.

Jamie indeed gains some popularity after the success of the show. He is as dedicated to his job as he was 20 years ago.

Closing Thoughts

Whether you are interested in a major recovery towing company based in Canada, team battle to ensure off-road recovery for accidents involving highway crew and logging trucks, or double rotator recovery towing, highway thru hell got you covered.

Highway thru hell has nine seasons so far. Do binge-watch if you haven’t. If you have watched the show already, tell me in the comments below Which season, episode, or character is your favorite, and why?

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Last Updated on by alishbarehman

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  1. I would like to know what the cost some of these Companies are charged. This has got to be what out there. But just curious to know some of the prices these companies are billed

  2. You guys have our respect. Working under the
    worst conditions. Dangerous. Just can’t look away. Please be safe. Blessing sent to all.

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