‘The world needs more Ramons’
Tow truck drivers recall coworker killed on job
When Ramon Echeverria’s van broke down on the way to work, he had no choice but to call his employer for help.
Echeverria worked for Grube’s Towing and needed a tow and his van repaired.
“He noticed that the driver that towed his vehicle had really worn-out boots,” owner Tim Grube said. “He didn’t say any- thing to anybody. He just noticed that his boots were really worn out. There were holes on them and some duct tape or something on them.”
When Echeverria finished his shift, he went to a store and bought his colleague a new pair of boots and brought them in the next morning.
The driver offered to pay Echeverria back, but he wouldn’t take the money.
“We’re not talking about a man who is rich,” Grube said. “He was probably like the average guy, getting by paycheck to paycheck. But doing the right thing always mattered to him.”
Echeverria was killed on the job in Racine County on May 29 removing debris from Interstate 94 near Seven Mile Road.
Unable to hold a proper funeral and memorial service because of the coronavirus pandemic, tow truck drivers memorialized Echeverria on Saturday with a procession of trucks.
“Unfortunately, towing is a dangerous job,” Grube said. “We lose a lot of operators every year. And this is a very common way for the towing community to say goodbye.”
More than 50 different tow trucks from dozens of different companies around the state met at the park-andride off Brown Deer Road in River Hills to honor Echeverria’s memory and to mourn the loss of one of their own.
Echeverria was part of a team that patrolled I-94 that helped tow disabled vehicles and cleared debris from the interstate.
Echeverria saw some debris and stopped his truck to remove it. The debris happened to be a dead turtle and in the process of throwing it off the interstate, he was hit by a commercial vehicle and died.
Grube said his company has video of the incident and has shared that with the Wisconsin State Patrol. According to news reports, the driver and his rig were located in Ripon.
It is unclear if charges will be brought against the driver.
‘Slow down and move over’
The towing industry can be competitive, with companies going after the same jobs and customers, but after Echeverria’s death, that competition was put to the side.
“Everyone was calling and asking, how can we help?” Grube said. “Everybody was dropping what they were doing and saying, what can we do for you? Can I send you people to help? What can we do?”
A GoFundMe page has been set up for Echeverria’s family and has raised more than $8,000 toward a $9,000 goal.
Dave Alexander works for Bob’s Towing in West Bend and has been to many services for tow truck drivers who have been killed while on the job.
“We give our lives to change somebody’s tire on the side of the highway, but we shouldn’t,” Alexander said. “That half a second that you’re going to save is not going to be life or death for you, but for the one you kill, it is.”
Tow truck drivers from around the state came to be part of the procession.
Grube has been thinking about the boots Echeverria bought for his colleague and hopes more people follow that example.
“The world needs more Ramons,” Grube said. “I’ve been trying to share that message to everybody since his passing. Be a Ramon. Be like Ramon. Share that love for each other. We need it now more than ever.”
Echeverria, an immigrant from Mexico who lived in Milwaukee, is survived by a wife and three children.
Grube is imploring drivers to be mindful of those working on the road and to move over when someone is working.
“Give us our space to work safely,” Grube said. “The law is to slow down and move over. And people have to respect it. If you see the flashing lights up ahead, if you see a vehicle on the side of the road whether it’s a police car, a fire truck, a tow truck or someone fixing the ditch or a disabled vehicle, whatever it is, start slowing down as soon as you see it.
“Ramon’s life was far too valuable for what ultimately became a turtle, but he was doing his job by removing debris by trying to save somebody else from having the situation that happened to him,” Grube said.