They need new Jaws, so they're selling next year. The Humboldt Fire Department (HFD) is putting out a 2013 calendar in order to raise money to buy new Jaws of Life.The calendar, which features photos taken of actual fire scenes and controlled burns conducted by the Humboldt Fire Department by the staff of the Humboldt Journal over the past 10 years, will be on sale in November. The idea for the calendar came from firefighter Graham Hall, noted Fire Chief Norbert LeBlanc. He brought up the idea as a way to fundraise for equipment."From there, it's surprising how good it's going," LeBlanc noted. "This is the first time we're trying this, so we'll see if it works out."New Jaws of Life will benefit not just Humboldt, but the entire surrounding area, LeBlanc explained.Firefighters with the HFD use Jaws to extricate people from crashed and crumpled vehicles all over the area - from St. Gregor to the Hwy. 2 Junction on Hwy. 5, from St. Benedict to 20 miles south of Humboldt on Hwy. 20, and every gravel and grid road in between.The Jaws consist of a number of pieces of equipment, each used for a specific purpose. There's a spreader, which is used to pull or push metal, a cutter to cut metal, a ram, which is a cylinder that can push or pull and airbags which are used to lift things up to 50,000 pounds slowly and steadily. While each piece is very powerful, their movement is very slow and controlled, in order to prevent further injuries. The HFD's current set of Jaws is 15 years old, and while still operational, are a little behind the times. New sets of Jaws are electrically operated, LeBlanc explained. Unlike the old set, which requires a generator and hydraulic lines to run, the new sets are actually battery-powered. "They're like your battery-operated drill at home," LeBlanc explained. "So when you do an extrication, there's no noise, no generator running, and they are more powerful than the ones we have now." That power is something that is needed when it comes to ripping apart newer vehicles, he noted. "In new vehicles, a lot of the design and hinges are made with very, very strong alloy steel," LeBlanc said. "The old Jaws just won't cut them. But the design of the new Jaws and more power means that they can."New spreaders have 54,000 lbs. of pull-push power, as do new cutters. New cutters can also cut through any steel on a car, including a steering column. One charged battery lasts 20 minutes - that's a long time when a simple extrication like popping a door off can be done in five. For more complex extrications that last longer, there not only would be backup batteries for the Jaws, but a cord that could connect it to a generator if necessary. Currently, the HFD firefighters are looking to purchase a new spreader and a new cutter, with two extra batteries each - the pieces of Jaws that are used the most for extrications. The cost for this - $22,000.The HFD will keep the old set of Jaws as a backup. Firefighters with the HFD hope people will support their efforts to buy these new Jaws by purchasing a calendar. They will be sold for $15 each, "and the money goes to a good cause," LeBlanc said. Printing of the calendar has been sponsored by businesses who also took out ads to acknowledge the efforts of the Humboldt Fire Department in the recent Fire Prevention Week special, printed as part of the Humboldt Journal on October 10.
