The star of Highway Thru Hell said the show wouldn't be possible without the community of Hope. 

The show recently aired its 200th episode and its star, Jamie Davis, said he couldn't be more grateful for the fans' continued support. The local business owner said he never expected to be on television for this long. 

"It's definitely a milestone for sure," Davis said. "A lot has changed over the years. And I don't think anybody really expected (the show) to go so long.

"Our first year, we mostly had fun with it. We had humour. It was humorous because we didn't really expect it to get as big as it did. But we thought 'we'll see where this goes.' And now we're filming our 14th season and they say that it could even go into another two seasons. That's already been talked about." 

The Canadian docuseries, which is filmed and produced by Great Pacific Media in partnership with Bell Media, aired its milestone episode on the USA Network on March 4. 

The show, which was created by Mark A. Miller, Kevin Mills, and Neil Thomas, debuted in 2012. Its episodes, which focus on the "real-life stories of recovery operators and highway crews" soon gathered a large following from all over the world. People from more than 180 territories worldwide tune in regularly to watch as crews from all over B.C. rescue vehicle from "steep cliffs, mountain tops, and washed out and collapsing sections" of the highways. 

Davis is the founder of Jamie Davis Motor Truck & Auto Ltd., a towing truck company in Hope that does "full spectrum towing, recovery and transport with operations in British Columbia." Services include towing, emergency recovery, traffic control, scene management and mitigation, and transport. He's been living in Hope, with his wife, Sherry Davis, and his six children since 2007.

All of his children have attended school in the community and three of his children, James Jr. Davis, Alexis Davis, and Briana Davis, are involved with the business. Davis's mother-in-law, Cheryl Hettervig, also helps out with the business.  

Towing has always been something his family has done, Davis said, and it started with his father who did retail towing in Aldergrove. Davis and his brothers then opened up Aggressive Auto Towing Ltd. in Abbotsford, which they still own and run. Eventually, he opened his business in Hope in 2007 and over the past decade its grown into the "industry leader" it's known as today. 

Aside from his current location at Silver Skagit Road, Davis owns businesses in Golden, Chilliwack, and Surrey.

He previously owned property on Flood Hope Road, where he parked and stored many of his tow truck fleet. The property was eventually sold in 2024 because, in his words, it had become a tourist attraction. And while he appreciated the enthusiasm, Davis said that the impromptu visits were starting to affect his business as the staff spent most of their time answering questions and inquiries fans had. 

Davis said he became involved in the show after Thomas met one of his heavy rescue operators in the summer of 2010. After Thomas's moving truck broke down on Highway 5, the showrunner struck up a conversation with the operator while being "rescued." The operator talked about the different jobs the company had done throughout the years and it gave Thomas the idea for the show. Mills, a cameraman, and Miller, an executive producer, later visited Davis in the winter of 2011 to discuss doing a show about heavy recovery.

Davis said he agreed to the show with hopes that it could help change the negative perceptions and stereotypes surrounding the heavy duty towing and recovery industry. After they secured him for filming, production began and the show debuted on Sept. 4, 2012.

Now over a decade later, Davis has been featured in every episode of the show. The show's resonance with fans from all around the world has been incredibly humbling, Davis said, and he appreciates all the support and love he's received. And he's especially grateful that he's been able to film the show in Hope. 

"Hope has kind of been a gift that keeps giving for the show," he said. "The mountains, the terrain, the weather patterns. It's very much a crossroads. And as far as trucking goes, it's a very important place. You don't go anywhere in Canada, or up to Alaska, without going through Hope. And for (the show's story) it's been a gift."

Davis said that Hope's surrounding highways, and the events that have happened on them, has provided countless inspiration and invaluable content for the show. 

At the same time, Davis wants the Hope community to know that they are still a business accessible to everyone. And that they are part of the community and will continue to work in Hope for as long as possible. 

"There's a lot of misconceptions that we aren't in this town. And it's kind of brought a negative effect to the business," Davis said. "And this misconception has been taken advantage of by our competition who have been telling our customers that we're not here.

"And it's absolutely the opposite. The road goes on forever and the highway never ends. But Hope is the hometown for us." 

He said it's the hometown for the show as much as it is for his family, with his kids going to school here and working here. 

"Hope has always been hometown for my kids."