Copyright 2006 The Austin American-Statesman
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By MIGUEL LISCANO
Austin American-Statesman (Texas)

HAYS COUNTY, Texas — The Jaws of Life isn't really a practical tool. It weighs an awkward 50 pounds, and its 2-foot-long lobster claw shape is designed to pry open or slice through wrecked vehicles to reach trapped people.

Which is why Chisholm Trail Fire Rescue Chief Blake Dorsett doesn't understand why someone would steal the tool from his fire station.

The Jaws of Life was among several pieces of equipment stolen from the Lytton Springs station in Caldwell County this week. The thief or thieves also made off with a $5,000 electric generator, a set of tools worth about $400, a $250 air compressor and a $135 chain saw.

The Jaws of Life and the hydraulic equipment that went with it will cost about $25,000 to replace, Dorsett said.

"There's really no telling why somebody would do that," Dorsett said. "If you took the Jaws of Life into a pawn shop, they wouldn't know what it was."

Dorsett said someone took the equipment between 8 p.m. Monday and 6:40 p.m. Tuesday. There was no sign of forced entry, Dorsett said, adding that a door was found unlocked Tuesday evening. There were also scrapes on the floor where the thief dragged the equipment out a bay door.

No one was at the station when it was burglarized, he said.

For the 32-member volunteer fire department, which serves 179 square miles in Caldwell and Hays counties, it's a major loss. Dorsett said the department gets most of its money from grants and donations, and the two counties pitch in a combined $22,000 a year.

The county money usually goes to buy fuel, and Dorsett said he isn't sure how they'll replace the equipment.

For now, Dorsett said, the department's other two stations at Niederwald and Mustang Ridge will share equipment, but that could slow response time for emergencies.

"It hurts us bad," Dorsett said. "It's a slap in the face."