Fire District purchases latest extrication equipment

The Weiser Fire District recently purchased the latest in extrication equipment that will make removing victims from crashed vehicles more efficient.
 Long known as the “Jaws of Life” for their jaw-like appearance, the tools are capable of cutting or spreading any material, including metal and plastic, enabling firefighters to remove doors and even entire roofs from badly crushed vehicles.
 “The cool thing about these is that they are battery powered,” said Weiser Fire District Chief Tim Atwood. “We have extrication tools, but the stuff we have now is operated by a hydraulic pump that either sits in the truck or on the ground. There is a hose that is attached, and it takes time to set that up. This new stuff, you literally walk away with it and it’s fast. There is a battery on board (the truck) that powers it.”
 Daniel Field, owner of Woody’s Towing, generously provided cars and space at his wrecking yard where firefighters recently practiced their skill using the latest version of the equipment.
 Atwood said training is critical and that timing is of the essence when freeing victims trapped in damaged vehicles.
 “The battery powered equipment will make accessing patients involved in vehicle crashes faster,” he said. “This will get medical care to injured victims sooner, reducing suffering and improving patient outcomes. Currently, the district is using equipment that was purchased at auction when it was sold by a larger city in the Treasure Valley.”
 Washington County recently approved the Weiser Fire District’s request for approximately $36,000 to purchase the tools. The money will come from ARPA (America Rescue Plan Act) funds. 
 The Act, passed by Congress in March 2021, is a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill intended to provide relief, in part, to state and local governments from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
 “I would like to thank Washington County for the financial support, Woody’s Towing for providing the vehicles used for training, and Weider Fire Equipment and Elite Extraction for the opportunity to demo the new equipment,” Atwood said. “The new tools have been ordered and will arrive in about 12 weeks.”
Brief History:
 Extrication tools were the brainchild of physicist and educator George Hurst who, in 1961, witnessed a serious accident at a stockcar race. He was appalled at how long it took to get the badly injured driver out of the wreckage and sought to devise a better way to get the job done. In the past, emergency personnel were forced to use a variety of everyday tools for extrication purposes, including large circular saws that further panicked victims and ran the risk of sparking a vehicle fire. The new tools resulted in faster and safer results. Early on, when emergency personnel first saw the Jaws of Life in action, they referred to drivers as being snatched from the “jaws of death.”
 The set of tools typically includes spreaders, cutters, rams, and combination, which combines aspects of the other tools into one tool.

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18 E. Idaho St.
Weiser, ID 83672
PH: (208) 549-1717
FAX: (208) 549-1718
 

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