New Jaws Of Life Help Tulsa Firefighters Respond More Quickly

New life saving equipment could save firefighters a lot of time on the scene of a critical crash - and Tulsa firefighters say in those situations, minutes, even seconds count.

"If it takes 15 seconds, two minutes, three minutes less to get someone out of the car, that's an amount of time they're on their way to the hospital," Firefighter Andy Little said.

Little said that's why the department is trying out a new version of these lifesavers.

The new jaws of life have a few differences from the old reliable ones, but the most significant change is these are battery operated and cordless, while the old jaws are hydraulically powered.

"We can go kind of where we need to and we're not hampered by the tether to the power unit," Captain Matt Shearer said.

Little said this will significantly cut down on the amount of prep time on scene.

"You have to get off the truck, you have to get the motor, you have to carry it over to where you're going to do it, it's heavy," Little said of the old jaws. "Now, one man can get that tool, pop the battery in it, and get to work."

Plus, Shearer said the new ones are a little more powerful.

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"Over the ones we have, (they) have a little bit more opening and closing force," he said.

But no decisions have been made yet; the department wants to give the guys the opportunity to really test the jaws out.            

Shearer said so far so good, but they may not be ready to go completely cordless just yet.

"Batteries have their limitations," he said. "So if we're on an extended extrication, it would be good to have our power units there."

The department says they might keep a set of both types of jaws, to use in different situations.