24/7 towing and roadside help
Towing in Fresno, CA: Help on 99, 41, 168 and 180
Stuck in Fresno? Call 1-888-TOW-1213. We lock your price by text, send the nearest available partner tow company and check on you until help arrives.
If anyone is hurt or you're stopped in a live lane, call 911 first.
- Check-ins until help arrives
- Driver card and truck tracking
- Price locked by text
- Photo-protected tow
How it works in Fresno. Sentinel Towing is a network, not a tow company. A vetted local partner in the Fresno area does the job. We stay with you by text and hold them to your locked price. Not in Fresno? Find a tow truck near you.
Towing in Fresno
Four Freeways, One Number to Call
Fresno runs on four freeways. Highway 99 carries the long north-south trips through the valley. Highway 41 cuts through town on its way to Yosemite. Highway 168 heads east to Clovis. Highway 180 crosses from the west side toward Reedley and Kings Canyon.
When a car gives out on one of them, the fix starts with where you are. Tell us the freeway, your direction and the last exit you passed. Then tell us what the car did. Did it cough and die? Did a tire go? Did you just run out of gas on 41 near Friant Road?
We text you a price that's locked, then send the nearest available partner. Out of gas is fuel delivery. Keys on the seat and doors locked is a lockout. Anything that won't drive gets a tow.
Tule fog
Broke Down in Tule Fog? Do This, in This Order
Fresno's winter fog is thick enough that December here gets less than half its possible sunshine. Inside a bank of tule fog, you can usually see less than 600 feet, and sometimes almost nothing. Highway 99 south of Fresno has seen major chain-reaction pile-ups in it. Caltrans even put a fog warning system on a stretch of 99 south of the city. If your car quits in the fog, follow these steps.
- Get off the lane. Coast onto the shoulder, an exit or a side street. Every foot away from traffic counts.
- Hazards on right away. In California, that also puts Vehicle Code 21809 on your side. Drivers must move over or slow down for a stopped car with flashing hazards.
- Don't stand behind the car. If there's a guardrail or a safe spot well off the road, wait there. If not, stay buckled in.
- Call with landmarks. The nearest exit sign, a bridge, a farm road. In fog, your driver finds you by what you tell us.
Watch for black ice too. Fog can bring drizzle that freezes on the road when it's cold enough. You can check closures on Caltrans QuickMap before you leave.
Summer in Fresno
Summer Heat Takes Its Toll Too
Fresno's summers are long and dry. NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals for the Fresno airport show about 106 days a year at 90°F or above, and about 32 days at 100 or hotter. That's hard on batteries, cooling systems and old tires. If the temperature gauge climbs, pull over and shut the car off. Don't try to limp across town on 99 in July.
Off the freeway
Late Nights in the Tower District and Downtown
Not every call comes from a freeway. Plenty start on a side street after a show at the Tower Theatre, or in a downtown lot after a late shift. The car won't turn over, or the keys are sitting on the driver's seat. Those are quick jobs, and the partner comes to the curb where you are.
At night, wait somewhere lit, like a store entrance or a busy corner, instead of alone in a dark lot. We text you the driver's name and photo, so you can walk back to the car when the truck you're expecting pulls up. Your price doesn't change because it's late. It's locked when we text it.
Areas we cover around Fresno
Fresno Neighborhoods and Nearby Towns
- In town: Downtown, the Tower District around Olive and Wishon, Fig Garden, and the Woodward Park area between Highway 41 and Friant Road.
- East: Clovis along Highway 168, and Sanger.
- South, along 99: Fowler, Selma and Kingsburg.
- West and north: Kerman on Highway 180, and Madera up 99.
Heading up 168 toward the mountains or out 180 toward the parks? Past the valley floor, it depends on whether a partner can reach you. We'll say so on the call, before you pay for anything.
Fresno questions
Fresno Drivers Ask
How will a tow truck find me in thick fog?
By what you tell us. Give the freeway, direction, nearest exit and anything you can see nearby. Keep your hazards on. We text you your driver's details and you can follow the truck on a map, so you'll see them coming before you can see the truck.
I locked my keys in the car at Woodward Park. Can you help?
Yes. That's a standard lockout. Tell us which lot you're in and what car it is. If the keys are lost, not locked inside, the car needs a new key made, and that's a tow to a dealer or locksmith.
I ran out of gas on Highway 41. Can you bring some?
Yes, a partner can bring enough fuel to get you to a station. Pull as far right as you can first. If you drive an electric car, that's a tow to a charger instead.
What if the partner shows up and the price is different?
You pay the price we texted you. That's part of our Stay-With-You Promise. If the job turns out to be different, we text you a new price first, and you decide.
Roadside help in Fresno, CA
Tow Truck and Roadside Services in Fresno
Sentinel is a 24-hour towing and roadside assistance network for Fresno drivers. Tell us what happened, and we send a vetted local towing company near you with a truck suited to the job: a tow truck for a car that can't be driven (a flatbed where the vehicle needs one, like many all-wheel-drive cars), or a service truck for a jump start, lockout, flat tire, fuel delivery or winch-out.
Car towing
Cars, SUVs, minivans and light pickups. Price locked by text, photos before hookup.
Car towing
Jump starts
Clicks, dim dash lights or nothing at all? A dead battery jump, day or night.
Jump starts
Car lockouts
Keys locked inside, on the seat or in the trunk. A partner works to get you back in without damage.
Car lockouts
Flat tire changes
Got a spare but no safe way to put it on? A partner swaps it for you.
Flat tire changes
Fuel delivery
Ran out of gas? Enough fuel to get you to the nearest station.
Fuel delivery
Winch-outs
Stuck in snow, mud or a shallow ditch near the road? A partner can usually pull you out.
Winch-outsThe Sentinel Stay-With-You Promise
Seven Promises on Every Fresno Call
Read the fine print on the promise page.
We stay with you. From your call until the truck arrives, we check on you by text.
See your driver before they arrive. You get their name, photo and truck by text, and you can track your truck on a map.
Your family knows too. Give us one number, and we text them your location and arrival time.
Photo-protected tow. Before hookup, your driver photographs all 4 sides of your vehicle. We text you the photos.
Price locked by text. You get your price by text before we dispatch. That price is the most you pay for the job. If the job changes, we text a new price first and you decide.
Never stranded after. Ride along in the truck when it's safe and allowed, or we help you get a ride. We also point you to a good repair shop.
Free Sentinel Circle. After your first job, your vehicle is on file. Next time, just text "TOW" for priority dispatch.
How it works
From Your Call to Your Driver
- 01You call
Our 24/7 line answers
Call 1-888-TOW-1213. Tell us where you are, what you drive and what went wrong.
- 02We lock it in
Your price, by text
We text your price before anyone is sent. That's the most you'll pay for the job you described.
- 03A partner accepts
The nearest truck takes it
The nearest available partner tow company accepts your job. They're vetted for insurance and licensing.
- 04You see who's coming
Driver card and tracking
You get your driver's name, photo and truck, plus a link to track your truck. We check in until they arrive.
Nearby cities
Fresno roadside guides
Fresno, CA
Stuck in Fresno? Call and We'll Stay With You.
Our line answers 24/7. Your price is locked by text before we send anyone.