Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

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Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

March 09, 2019, 06:31:51 pm

On a recent trip returning to NorCal from AZ, we witnessed the aftermath of two RV fires, one in the Parker, AZ area, and the other on I-5 in Central CA. I did not see an attached toad on either damaged RV, but it got me thinking. We have never drilled or practiced how we might react to an RV fire in regards to detaching the toad and backing it away from the potential engulfed motor home. Does/has anyone in this group ever drilled for rapid detach?

Of course I know that attending to extinguishing the initial fire and evacuating people and pets is a primary concern, but I think salvaging the toad is also important, especially in harsh environments or when transportation of people is essential.

I use a Sterling tow bar to pull our Jeep Cherokee. I normally use a locking hitch pin to fix the tow bar to the motor home, but now I'm thinking it might be wiser to use a non-locking pin instead. That way, I could pull the pin out, detach the two cables and pull the electrical plug and the toad could be rapidly backed from the motor home, even if dragging the tow bar with it for a hundred feet or so. In my mind, that would be as fast or faster than doing the normal disconnect of the tow bar, which is difficult if you have stopped and the toad is not level or square to the motor home.

Do any of you have any thoughts -- or, better, any experience -- in this matter? And yes, I do plan to drill for this soon.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #1 – March 10, 2019, 11:45:46 am

I think I'd worry more about vandals with a non-locking hitch pin.

Just make sure the key is on your key chain and always quickly accessible....always put your keys in the same place, somewhere near the door for a quick exit.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #2 – March 10, 2019, 06:08:31 pm

The smoke from even a small fire would quickly make staying inside untenable. Caught very early, you might extinguish it. Probably have an excellent shot on a stove fire. Awakened by the smoke alarm, I am getting out - hopefully.

As to the toad, my inclination would be to let it burn. Gasoline and propane are rather explosive. I can unhook in a minute and it would take almost another minute to get in the Jeep and get away. That might be too long.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #3 – March 10, 2019, 07:24:35 pm

Quote from: Don Malpas - March 10, 2019, 06:08:31 pm

The smoke from even a small fire would quickly make staying inside untenable. Caught very early, you might extinguish it. Probably have an excellent shot on a stove fire. Awakened by the smoke alarm, I am getting out - hopefully.

This is very true !

In a real fire, we were aware of the fire long before the smoke detectors sounded. As a matter of fact, not one sounded an alarm until we were racing out the door. That was after a few minutes to collect our dog, her cat, and 2 adopted stray/feral cats.

This all happened at 1am at home, without any advance warning or knowledge. It was arson, I'll spare you the details.

IMHO your best plan is to save lives, material things can be replaced.

I agree that a way to unhook quickly would be prudent to practice. It 'might' be possible to save a tow vehicle, if something minor happens on the road, that doesn't involve a fire near the fuel tanks. Anything behind the rear wheels is dangerously close to fuel tank and the toad.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #4 – March 11, 2019, 11:02:28 am

I know it would take a while for me to unhook the hitch - undoing the towbars at the car is twice the work, then undoing the two safety cables, then undoing the brake away the hook to the emergency braking system, then removing tow braking system on the drivers floor would not be worth my life.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #5 – March 11, 2019, 11:06:16 am

I think it would be better to store an emergency bag with food, water and space blankets in the back of the tow and practice throwing that well clear of the car.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #6 – March 11, 2019, 04:57:27 pm

Quote from: John DaCrema - March 11, 2019, 11:02:28 am

I know it would take a while for me to unhook the hitch - undoing the towbars at the car is twice the work, then undoing the two safety cables, then undoing the brake away the hook to the emergency braking system, then removing tow braking system on the drivers floor woould not be worth my life.

Actually that is exactly how I feel but couldn’t put it in words as well as John.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #7 – March 11, 2019, 08:18:02 pm

In an emergency we will do or follow the path we tend to follow without thinking. I.E. if we turn left out of the door as we leave our RV we will turn left without thinking in an emergency. If you are going to practice 'in case of a fire' I would suggest thinking through the whole process.
As others have stated it will not take long before a fire is to large for us to control. At best we should be looking for an escape route at the first sign of trouble.
In my TK we have two plans. If I'm behind the fire we will kick out the windows on either side. They are large enough for both of us to get thru. We have two cats - I hope they will be within grabbing distance. If I'm in front of the fire then we'll make it thru the side door - again hoping the cats are in grabbing distance. We have cat cages that they can be put in. We have a bug out bag that contains assorted goods and papers to hold us till we get to a better place wherever that is.

As they say you can replace just about anything but your life. My thinking is let the insurance company replace the stuff. Live to see another day.

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #8 – March 12, 2019, 02:15:52 am

That got me to thinking. On the MH end, there's a locking pin, two hooks, wiring cable and breakaway cable.
On the tow'd side there's 6 things: 2 towbar pins, 2 'quick links' to the safety cables, wiring cable and breakaway cable.
The towbar pins, wiring cable and breakaway cables are quick to disconnect. The quick links take a while to unscrew.
The safety cable has a hook on one end which is attached under the bumper and an eye splice connected to the quick link.

Is there a reason not to reverse the safety cable? Connect the eye splice with the quick link to the bumper and the hook to the tow'd. That would be a faster disconnect that unscrewing the quick link. Am I missing a safety issue if I do that?

Re: Drills for Emergency Disconnect of Toad

Reply #9 – March 15, 2019, 12:51:33 pm

Quote from: Ray S. - March 09, 2019, 06:31:51 pm

I use a Sterling tow bar to pull our Jeep Cherokee.

The Blue Ox baseplate uses twist-and-snap attachments for the tow bar. These can be twisted and removed with the tow bar attached.

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