24/7 towing and roadside help
Towing in Memphis, TN: Tow Truck Help Across Three States of the Mid-South
Stuck in Memphis? 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 Memphis. Sentinel Towing is a network, not a tow company. A vetted local partner in the Memphis area does the job. We stay with you by text and hold them to your locked price. Not in Memphis? Find a tow truck near you.
Tow truck in Memphis
Towing in Memphis, From the River Bridges to the Outer Loop
Memphis has two interstate loops and two interstate bridges over the Mississippi. I-240 is the inner loop serving Midtown, the airport and East Memphis. I-269 is the big outer loop through Millington, Arlington and Collierville and down into Mississippi. I-40 and I-55 cross the Mississippi River from Arkansas. Sam Cooper Boulevard, Poplar Avenue and Lamar Avenue carry a lot of the rest.
Tell us the road, your direction and the last exit or cross street. We text a locked price, then send the nearest available vetted partner. It might be a jump start in a Poplar Avenue lot, a lockout near Beale Street or a tow off I-240 to your mechanic.
The state's free HELP trucks
TDOT runs free, lime-yellow HELP trucks on Memphis's busiest freeways, including the river crossings, I-240, I-55 and the Bill Morris Parkway. They carry gas and water and can help with small problems. For emergency aid on a Tennessee highway, dial *847.
TDOT says help isn't guaranteed in every case. If a HELP truck can't get you going, or you need a tow to a shop, call us.
Where Memphis drivers get stuck
The Bridges, the Stack and the Loop
The M Bridge (I-40)
The Hernando de Soto Bridge carries six lanes of I-40 between West Memphis and Memphis. When it closed for repairs in 2021, traffic moved to the I-55 bridge. On either bridge, stay in the car with your belt on and hazards flashing, and tell us which way you were headed.
The Memphis-Arkansas Bridge (I-55)
The older of the two interstate river bridges. Say whether you're on the Arkansas side or the Tennessee side of the river. It decides which partner comes.
The East Memphis stack
I-40, I-240, Sam Cooper Boulevard and Summer Avenue all meet at one big four-level interchange. Name the ramp you were on, or the road you just left.
I-240 by the airport and Lamar Avenue
The south side of the loop runs past the airport, Lamar Avenue and Getwell Road along Nonconnah Creek. A blowout there is a tire change if there's safe room on the shoulder, or a short tow if not.
I-269, the outer loop
I-269 swings wide through Millington, Arlington and Collierville, then south into Mississippi. If the gas gauge hits empty out there, ask about fuel delivery.
Car impounded?
Getting Your Car Out of the City Lot
Cars towed by the Memphis Police, the Shelby County Sheriff or the city's Housing and Community Development division go to the MPD Vehicle Storage lot on Klinke Avenue. It's open 24 hours. Bring proof of ownership, your registration or title, and a photo ID.
Here's the part people miss. A licensed driver has to drive the car off the lot. If you don't have one with you, the city says you can arrange to have the car towed out instead.
Ask the lot whether an outside tow company can pick it up. If it can, call us with the lot, your car and where it needs to go. You get your price by text first. We don't handle the release itself.
Tennessee's clear-the-road rules
Tennessee's driver manual says not to stop in a travel lane for a breakdown. Keep moving until you can pull fully off the road. After a crash with no serious injuries, T.C.A. 55-10-117 says drivers should move cars that can still be driven off the roadway.
Tennessee's move over law also covers tow trucks and wreckers, so passing drivers must move to a lane not next to your driver when they safely can, and slow down and pass with caution if they can't.
Mid-South weather
Summer Storms, Winter Ice
Memphis summers are hot and sticky, with quick afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Severe storms can hit any time of year, but mostly in spring, with hail, high wind, flash flooding and sometimes tornadoes.
Winter here is less about snow and more about ice. Freezing rain coats roads and pulls tree limbs down onto power lines. On ice, a slow slide into a ditch or a curb can happen fast, and a winch-out often gets you back on the road.
Heat and cold both kill tired batteries. If the car clicks and won't crank, try a jump first. Check TDOT SmartWay for closures before a bad-weather drive.
Areas we cover around Memphis
One Metro, Three States
Memphis
Downtown, South Main, Harbor Town, Midtown, Cooper-Young, Orange Mound, Whitehaven, Frayser, Raleigh, Hickory Hill, East Memphis, Cordova and Wolfchase.
Tennessee suburbs
Germantown, Collierville, Bartlett, Lakeland, Arlington and Millington.
Across the state lines
Southaven, Olive Branch, Horn Lake and Hernando in Mississippi. West Memphis and Marion in Arkansas.
Your driver's name, photo and truck come by text, with a link to track your truck on a map.
Memphis questions
Memphis Towing Questions
My car was released from the Klinke Avenue lot, but I can't drive it. Can you tow it out?
Often, yes. First ask the lot whether an outside tow company can pick it up. If it can, call us with the car's details and where it should go. Your price comes by text before anyone is sent.
I broke down on the I-40 bridge headed into Arkansas. Can you help?
Yes. Stay in the car with your belt on and hazards flashing. Tell us your direction and which end of the bridge you're closer to. If you're in a live lane and can't move, call 911 first.
Do you tow in Southaven and West Memphis too?
Yes. Both are in the area we cover. We do local tows, so tell us where the car should go, and we'll confirm the price by text.
Can you text my family while I wait on I-240?
Yes. Give us one number and we text them your location and when the truck should arrive. It's part of the Stay-With-You Promise.
Roadside help in Memphis, TN
Tow Truck and Roadside Services in Memphis
Sentinel is a 24-hour towing and roadside assistance network for Memphis 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 Memphis 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
Memphis roadside guides
Memphis, TN
Stuck in Memphis? Call and We'll Stay With You.
Our line answers 24/7. Your price is locked by text before we send anyone.