Hydraulic rescue tools are used by emergency rescue personnel to assist vehicle extrication of crash victims, as well as other rescues from small spaces. These tools include cutters, spreaders, door busters and rams. They are popularly referred to in the English speaking Commonwealth nations, the US and Canada as the Jaws of Life, a trademark of Hurst Performance, Inc. The Jaws of Life was first used in 1963 as a tool to free race car drivers from their vehicles after accidents.
Hydraulic rescue tools are powered by a hydraulic pump, which can be hand-, foot-, or engine-powered, or even built into the tool. These tools may be either single-acting, where hydraulic pressure will only move the cylinder in one direction, and the return to starting position is accomplished using a pressure-relief valve and spring setup, or dual-acting, in which hydraulic pressure is used to both open and close the hydraulic cylinder.
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