Tag Archives: Heavy Rescue: 401

Production underway on Thunderbird’s Mud Mountain, a second spin-off from the hit Highway Thru Hell franchise

From a media release:

Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc. (TSXV: TBRD) (OTC: THBRF) (Thunderbird or the Company) announced today that production is currently underway on  the new original factual series, a second spin-off of the global hit Highway Thru Hell franchise. Bell Media’s Discovery has ordered eight one-hour episodes of Mud Mountain (working title).

Mud Mountain (wt) is set in the high mountains of British Columbia, just down the road from the Highway Thru Hell, where giant logs and bigger pay days beckon men to take huge risks. And no one is willing to go deeper in the mud than the Lebeau brothers, Craig and Brent, who are third generation family loggers, with very different styles, and separate operations. Now, wicked weather, and an even more frigid economy, has forced the brothers to bury the hatchet, and work together to survive road building, logging and brotherhood on the steepest, muddiest mountains anywhere.

Thunderbird has implemented strict health and safety cultures on all of its shows, which has enabled the Company to remain fully operational throughout COVID-19. These protocols and measures were key to the safe development and production of the new Mud Mountain series.

Mud Mountain will be distributed around the world by Bell Media.

The series is produced by Great Pacific Media, Thunderbird’s factual division, and Bell Media Studios. Executive Producer is Mark Miller. The Series Producer is Jeff Kinnon.

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Season 4 of Heavy Rescue: 401 returns January 7 to Discovery

From a media release:

Buckle up, Canada! Discovery gets winter-ready with the return of smash-hit, MADE®-in-Canada original series HEAVY RESCUE: 401, airing Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT beginning Jan. 7. With 14 new episodes featuring compelling extreme winter wrecks and roadside rescues on Ontario’s notorious 400-series highways – extending from Windsor in the west to the Québec border in the east – the series takes viewers on a riveting ride through tense situations in intense environments. A Top 5 series on Discovery across all seasons among the key A25-54 demo, viewers can catch Season 4 of HEAVY RESCUE: 401 everywhere Discovery content can be found.

From Great Pacific Media, the makers of Discovery’s fan-favourite series HIGHWAY THRU HELL, HEAVY RESCUE: 401 tells the stories of Ontario heavy recovery operators who fight to clear wrecks, flip trucks, and keep drivers moving. Close to half-a-million vehicles travel these highways every day, requiring government and police forces to depend on the experienced men and women of Canada’s towing industry – ready to work just inches from open lanes and speeding traffic – when disaster strikes. Production on Season 5 of HEAVY RESCUE: 401 is currently underway.

About Season 4 of HEAVY RESCUE: 401:
The all-new season catches up with new Canadian Sonny Subra (Steve’s Towing) who earned the chance to run a rotator, the pinnacle of heavy recovery machines. Now he and his wife are set to embark on the next phase of their Canadian dream, pushing Sonny to work harder and stretch himself in a whole new way.

Mitch Wright (B&G Towing) starts a small job that turns into one of his biggest challenges. Meanwhile, Kevin Richardson leaves his longtime home at Metro Towing and adjusts to life at new company.

Collin Vandenheuvel (Preferred Towing) faces days of non-stop whiteout attacks on the highways around Sarnia and London pushing him to sharpen his skills with danger lurking around every bend. Nearby, Ross Towing faces its busiest winter in years, and newly promoted Brad Prince is forced to master his new wrecker with no time for training wheels.

In the east, Andrew Vink (Herb’s Towing) has rebuilt his heavy crew, putting his faith and his rotator in the hands of 21-year-old Zach,  but it remains to be seen if Zach’s ability matches his ambition. After working for the same family for years, everything changes for veteran Eric Godard when a new company (County Towing) and a new family, take over.

HEAVY RESCUE: 401 continues to work closely with the Ontario Provincial Police and Sgt. Kerry Schmidt to execute on-the-spot accident reconstructions, managing massive pileups, and overseeing toxic spill sites; and follows the crew at the Ontario Ministry of Transportation’s massive control centre.

In the premiere episode, “We’re Jumping In” (Tuesday, Jan. 7 at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT), after three decades on the highway, a major change forces Eric Godard to adapt to a whole new crew on a tough rollover. A vicious pre-winter storm pushes Sonny into urgent on-the-job training; and when a jet fuel spill shuts down the entire 401, it’s up to the Ross crew to get it back open.

Viewers can catch up on Season 3 of HEAVY RESCUE: 401 with a New Year’s Eve marathon, Tuesday, Dec. 31, beginning at 2 p.m ET on Discovery and now on the Discovery GO app.

HEAVY RESCUE: 401 is produced by Great Pacific Media (a Thunderbird Entertainment Group company) in association with Bell Media. Executive Producer is Mark Miller. Series Producer is Todd Serotiuk.

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Preview: Heavy Rescue: 401 rocks and rolls into Season 3

This is the third winter that I’ve taken the time to preview a new season of Heavy Rescue: 401. You may wonder why I bother. Isn’t this, and its predecessor, Highway Thru Hell, the same thing every week? The answer is yes, both programs feature folks cleaning up vehicular messes in the west or on Ontario’s highways. But the sameness ends there. Every situation is different from the last and every job varies.

So I was, once again, excited when the fine folks at Bell Media sent over materials pertaining to Season 3 of Heavy Rescue: 401, returning Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on the specialty channel.

The first episode of the season is called “One Twisted Mess,” and it’s apt. Using dashcam footage to show the drama unravel, a sunny, dry day on Highway 401 west of Toronto turns dangerous when a tractor-trailer and car converge in a cloud of dust and shredded metal. A squad of rotators and wreckers, led by Metro Truck Group converge on the scene to clean up the 100,000-pound cargo mess. It takes years on the job to figure out the best—and safest—way to upright a tumbled truck and trailer and I’m always amazed to see it being done on Heavy Rescue: 401.

Meanwhile, Preferred Towing is on the move on Highway 402, the site of a rolled propane tanker, a truly dangerous cargo to take care of. With a new truck added to the fleet, Collin is becoming an even more important member of his father, Gary’s, team. It’s an all hands on deck operation to upright the propane truck and jackknifed second hauler laden with tomatoes. Will Collin succeed in his first-ever solo job? Will part of the 402 become engulfed in tomato sauce? Tune in to Heavy Rescue: 401 on Tuesday to find out.

Heavy Rescue: 401 airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on Discovery.

Image courtesy of Bell Media.

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Smash hit Heavy Rescue: 401 charges into Season 3 beginning Jan. 8 on Discovery

From a media release:

Discovery’s smash hit original Canadian series HEAVY RESCUE: 401 returns with 14 new episodes this winter, chronicling dramatic recoveries along Ontario’s 400-series highways – extending from Windsor in the west to the Québec border in the east. A Top 5 series on Discovery last season, Season 3 of HEAVY RESCUE: 401 airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT beginning Tuesday, Jan. 8 on Discovery.

From the makers of Discovery’s fan-favourite series HIGHWAY THRU HELL, HEAVY RESCUE: 401 tells the dramatic stories of heavy recovery tow truck drivers who continue the good fight across one of North America’s busiest and most unforgiving series of highways. The stakes are high, every minute counts, and every job is vital…because closure is not an option.

An advanced vehicle safety technology leader, Toyota returns as proud sponsor of the third season of HEAVY RESCUE: 401.

About Season 3 of HEAVY RESCUE: 401:

The new season of HEAVY RESCUE: 401 promises to surprise audiences with nail-biting drama, chronicling familiar characters stepping up to bigger responsibilities, incredible stories of wintery wrecks, and dangerous challenges with new trucks. Storms and freak accidents attack the 401, pushing first responders, heavy rescue crews, and maintenance teams to their limits.

After making a big move to the competition, Sonny Subra faces another major decision about his direction in heavy rescue – and new pressure when he gets the opportunity of his career. In the snowbelt north of the city, Bubba Semple gets an opportunity of his own at Classic Towing – but it’s one that will challenge him at every turn.

At Preferred Towing in Sarnia, Ont., Gary Vandenheuvel’s crew faces a whiteout blitz lasting for days. However, his biggest challenge comes when his son Collin is faced with a dangerous close call.

Down in Windsor, Ont., Eric Goddard of Coxon’s Towing works to train a new generation of heavy operators. And when a raging river destroys a bridge and strands a dump truck, it forces Ross’ Towing to embark on a bigger recovery than anything they’ve ever attempted.

At the eastern end of the province, Scrappy Algonquin Towing enlists 50-year-old hardware in the fight against a frozen pileup, Herb’s Towing works to rebuild after a huge shakeup in the crew, and David Davidson at Unique Towing fights a lonely battle that will ultimately end his career on the road.

HEAVY RESCUE: 401 continues to work closely with the Ontario Provincial Police and Sgt. Kerry Schmidt to execute on-the-spot accident reconstructions, manage pileups, and oversee toxic spills. Once again this season, the series follows the crew at the Ontario Ministry of Transportation’s massive control centre to get a bird’s-eye view of the intricate and high-stakes highway system.

Subscribers can access live streaming of HEAVY RESCUE: 401 through the Discovery app, and stream Season 1 and 2 on demand on the Discovery app and Discovery.ca.

HEAVY RESCUE: 401 is produced by Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc. in association with Discovery Canada. Executive Producer is Mark Miller. Series producer is Todd Serotiuk.

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Comments and queries for the week of December 14

When does the new season of Highway Thru Hell start? I live in the States and I like to watch that show and what station will carry the show? —Jack

Highway Thru Hell is currently in production on a new season. Its spinoff, Heavy Rescue: 401 returns for Season 3 of January 8 on Discovery.


[The Det. Watts-centred] episode [of Murdoch Mysteries] speaks to the versatility and depth of a very young and competent actor. The role is very well written and [Daniel] Maslany does each performance more than justice. Everyone is still figuring out where he fits in the Murdoch Matrix. That’s OK. No matter what, this talented young craftsman bears watching. I will be following his career. Daniel, you have yourself another fan. Keep up the good work. —Patricia

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? Email greg.david@tv-eh.com or via Twitter @tv_eh.

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