Tow truck procession honors operator killed on I-5; operators implore freeway drivers to ‘slow down’

TACOMA, Wash. — Joe Masterson is one of three tow truck drivers killed on Washington state roads in the last six months.

Today, his family held his memorial service while his fellow operators gathered to deliver what they hope will be a life-saving message.

His death has struck a nerve with these operators and their employers.

They say these drivers take a risk every time they go to a job on a roadway.

Those they have to worry about most are often speeding, inattentive drivers.

It is an extraordinary sight: A Tacoma parking lot filled with tow trucks of nearly every description, here to honor one of their own — 49-year-old Joe Masterson — killed doing a job that they know all too well.

“Oh, my gosh,” said Kris Zachary. “I’m sure he’d be amazed, amazed and honored.”

Zachary owns Burns Towing in Tacoma.  She says she did not know Masterson but she knows the dangers he and her employees face.

So, for the last month, she has helped organize this caravan of tow trucks — a vivid show of support for others who ply their risky trade.

“It’s a tragedy for any owner to lose any of their drivers,” said Zachary. “It’s crushing. The public needs to slow down and move over when they see our guys on the freeway, on the side of the road.”

Masterson was on Interstate 5 near Milton last month to remove a disabled vehicle. He was just about to hook up the box truck when a suspected drunk FedEx driver plowed into him.

“I saw the tow truck driver flip in the air,” said Jean Ngatcha.

Masterson was there to tow Ngatcha’s vehicle; the second time in a year Masterson had come to his aid.

“He just told me, ‘Hey stay out of the way, stay in the passenger seat and I’ll do the rest,’” said Ngatcha.

It was likely the last thing he ever said. Moments later, he was dead.

On this day when Masterson’s family and friends said a final goodbye, these operators took to the same freeway where he lost his life.

They drove home the message that slowing down and moving over for those working on the side of the freeway isn’t just a life-saving thing to do, it’s the law.

“Hey, when you see any workers, state patrol, any officers, tow truck drivers, please slow down and move over,” said Hubie Yuen, owner of Hubie’s Towing. “We’ve all got families we want to go home to as well.”

In fact, it’s called the “slow-down, move over” law.

Drivers caught violating it face a mandatory fine of hundreds of dollars.

These drivers say they need to see the law enforced.

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