Rolled Over in Sawdust

Kabus Auto Body & Recovery has been a family owned and operating in Independence, Wis., since 1990. Company owner Ted Kabus started as a one-man operation and 23 years later the company has grown under his leadership. “I built my first tow truck in two days to help move things around the garage and compliment my repair business,” Kabus said. “We were able to expand our towing services over time.” Over the years Kabus has handled many interesting recoveries, including this semi on its side. “In February 2013, we were called out by the Trempealeau County Sheriffs Department to a rolled over tractor-trailer loaded with sawdust.” Kabus dispatched their massive eight-wheel-drive 1986 International twin-steer 40-ton Holmes 850 wrecker and their 1996 379 Peterbilt with a 600 Holmes hydraulic conversion. “We did our walk-around finding the roof of the trailer had blown out by the weight of the sawdust. We decided to off-load the sawdust to relieve the pressure,” Kabus said. A local farmer was hired to scoop out as much of the sawdust as he could with his John Deere loader. “We shoveled the rest out by hand until it was empty,” Kabus said. “Then we rigged our trucks for the upright.” Once the unloaded unit was back on its wheels, the Kabus crew hooked up the 850 and towed the tractor-trailer back to their shop. See more on the Kabus twin-steer 850 as the feature “My Baby” in the October 2013 issue of American Towman magazine. Show Yours @ TIW