Jaws of Life Needed to Extricate Irvine Man in Sunday Crash

IRVINE, CA — A 30-year-old man was injured in a traffic accident but trapped inside of his vehicle over the weekend. Orange County Fire Authority first responders needed to use the "jaws of life" to extricate the man from his car and get him safely to the hospital according to OCFA Capt. Bill Lackey.

The incident, which took place Sunday, Oct. 16 at approximately 2 p.m. at the corner of Jamboree and Walnut, in Irvine. The driver of a black sedan was trapped inside the vehicle until OCFA firefighters maneuvered him out.

He was transported to Orange County Global hospital with moderate injuries according to report.

The history of the "jaws of life," according to OCFA Capt. Larry Kurtz, stems from NASCAR design.

"The 'jaws' started as a fast way of extracting race car drivers from car wrecks on the racing circuit," Kurtz said.

Now all agencies across the nation and world are armed with spreaders, cutters, rams can expand to make an access point wider. The "jaws of life" aren't just used for vehicles, but can be used for forcible entry, search and rescue inside of structures, more than just automobile applications.

"Once on scene, firefighters train to 'peel and peek,' to be sure they aren't cutting through doorpost airbags that haven't gone off yet," he said. Extensive training for all firefighters on how to properly use the tools and keep up with the latest technology is part of the OCFA firefighters regular training.

OCFA Images, by permission