City of Milwaukee tows 248 cars from city's East Side Wed. night

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- On Day Two of the cleanup from the winter storm that brought snowfall to the area on Tuesday and Wednesday, some drivers spent the day Thursday, February 28th trying wondering about the whereabouts of their vehicles! The city of Milwaukee lifted its snow emergency on Thursday -- but not before towing a record number from Milwaukee's East Side.

Nearly 250 cars were towed to the city's tow lot on Wednesday night. Many drivers who showed up at the lot on Thursday were not happy to discover their vehicle had been towed.

All of the cars towed were parked along Milwaukee's designated snow emergency routes. Come Thursday morning, surprised drivers woke up to some bad news.

"I actually apparently got a call from a family member saying they were seeing my car get towed on TV," Vinny Shiley said.

Shiley got his car back, after shelling out about $200!

"They declared the snow emergency after I got home from work yesterday," Shiley said.

Inside the lobby of the tow lot, a full crowd waited for their turn to retrieve their wheels.

"I was under some sort of impression we would be given some sort of warning," one driver told FOX6 News.

David Lawrence, the tow lot manager, said in his 10 years in his position, Wednesday night's towing sets a record. So many cars were parked in snow emergency routes, tow drivers eventually gave up.

"We really didn't get the kind of compliance we would have liked. It's public safety," Lawrence said.

Lawrence says officials did their best to get the word out through the media and the city's resources -- including text alerts and email alerts.

In the end, it is the driver's responsibility to check after snowstorms -- a tough lesson learned for hundreds of Milwaukee drivers.

The cost for these drivers was a $105 towing fee, and $50 citation. For every day the car sits in the tow lot, it's another $20.

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