Mechanics in Triage Mode Across New England

(NECN: Amy Sinclair) - It's negative two degrees and Jeff Woodbury of South Portland, Maine is trying to get himself and the kids out the door.

"Well, I heard tick, tick from the minivan, nothing from the Buick and the Prius started just fine -- except it was blocked by the minivan."

Woodbury was one of thousands of Northern New Englanders who called AAA's Portland, Maine call center for help. Nothing gets the phones ringing there like bitter, cold winter -- cars won't start and fuel lines are frozen solid.

Don Lambert normally teaches driving school for AAA, but they recruited him for jump start duty.

While the weather is the primary reason for the call volume, AAA's Pat Moody says the bad economy is playing a role, too.

Moody says car batteries really should be replaced every three to five years, along with regularly scheduled vehicle maintenance.

Even worse than getting stranded in your driveway is getting stranded on the side of the road, which is why in addition to carrying jumper cables, experts say you should have warm clothes and a charged cell phone, at all times.

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