Darrell E. Carmichael
Darrel was born September 18, 1944, in Richmond, Missouri. He was married to Georgia A. Gensler on January 7, 1966. Together, they have two children; Kevin and Christene. Both Georgia and Kevin are active participants with the family business, Carmichael Tow & Recovery.
Darrel entered the towing industry in 1970 by offering towing services at his repair shop. He later added more vehicles and equipment to his fleet so that he could offer a wider variety of towing services to include recoveries. Not only are the Carmichael’s extensively involved in crane work, but they also specialize in disaster recovery. Their team has traveled worldwide to provide valuable assistance following floods, fires, hurricanes, air disasters, train wrecks, and acts of terrorism. In the past year alone, Darrel and his team have provided invaluable assistance following Hurricanes Charlie, Francis, Ivan, Gene, and Katrina. They also assisted with Corporate Airlines, 5966, Air Crash.
Darrel has received extensive training and certifications in numerous areas to include training from Kinman of Indianapolis, Wreckmaster, Inc., and is TRAA Level 3 Certified. He has been the recipient of various training through the Office of Emergency Preparedness, National Disaster Medical Services, U.S. Public Health Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the NTSB, and Homeland Security, of which he is a founding member. Darrel is currently one of only two certified instructors qualified to teach “Train the Trainer” courses in incident management as a result of his training in a program developed jointly by the Missouri Department of Transportation and P.B Farradine.
Darrel has served as president of the Missouri Tow Association for three terms. In addition, his service in that organization includes three terms as vice president, ten years as board member, and five years as chairman of the Legislative Committee. He is currently a member of TRAA and served as a TRAA delegate for six years. He has also actively served as a panelist for Level 3 testing for TRAA. In addition, Darrel is a current member of the International Towing & Recovery Hall of Fame & Museum.
Darrel has also found time to serve his community over the years. He is a life member of both the American Legion and V.F.W.; a deacon at his church; an active participant in the T.O.W.E.D. and DARE programs; and has supplied both vehicles and equipment for the National Docu-Drama Program for the past 20 years.
Darrel has also received numerous citations from government entities such as the U.S. Public Health Service, FEMA, the FBI, NTSB, and Homeland Security. However, he is most proud of a citation he received from the Mayor and people of New York City for his work at “Ground Zero”.
Darrel’s future goals include promoting and assisting with much needed legislative changes that affect the towing industry. He also hopes to help improve education provided within the industry.