Hydraulic rescue instruments, also known as jaws of life, are utilized by emergency rescue personnel to assist in the extrication of victims concerned in vehicle accidents or railway accidents and slicing massive-sized debris of mild metallic constructions into smaller pieces for extraction of injured/lifeless victims out from constructing rubble in earthquake-raged areas, in addition to other rescues in small spaces. These instruments include cutters, spreaders, and rams. Such devices were first utilized in 1963 as a software to free race automobile drivers from their vehicles after crashes. The Hurst Rescue Tool was invented by George Hurst, circa 1961, after he considered a stock automotive race accident in which it took workers over an hour to take away an injured driver from his car. Previously rescuers often used circular saws for automobile extrication, however these suffered from a number of drawbacks. Saws can create sparks, which could start a fire, create loud sounds, stress the sufferer(s), Wood Ranger Power Shears specs Wood Ranger Power Shears Wood Ranger Power Shears sale Wood Ranger Power Shears price order now and often minimize slowly.

Alternatively, rescuers may try to pry open the automobile doorways with a crowbar or Halligan bar, but this could compromise the stability of the automobile, Wood Ranger Power Shears official site or injure the victims additional. In comparison, hydraulic spreader-cutters are quieter, faster, stronger, and extra versatile: they can lower, open, and even carry a car. Hurst Performance started to export elements to a European company, Zumro ResQtec, to avoid import obligation. Zumro ResQtec was taken with creating these instruments to be used in auto racing, with ResQtec concentrating on the European market and Hurst targeting the American market. The hydraulic spreader was initially developed in 1972 by Tim Smith and Mike Brick, who later developed a cutter and a hydraulic ram. When an occupant is trapped the software is used to pry or Wood Ranger shears reduce the car to take away the occupant. It takes about two minutes to take the roof off a automobile. Mike Brick coined the phrase "Jaws of Life" after he observed people saying that their new device "snatched folks from the jaws of death", then used as a registered brand identify for Hurst products.

The title "jaws of life" is, nevertheless, used colloquially to explain other hydraulic rescue instruments. Brick later developed a single rescue device that combines the features (push, pull, reduce and spread) of earlier rescue tools, and patented it