Thermal imaging gives firefighters sixth sense

Jen Lawson

Thursday, May 6, 2004 | 10:09 a.m.

Imagine walking into a smoke-filled, pitch black room you've never been in before and trying to find unconscious victims.

That's how Clark County firefighters operate -- but not for long. This summer they will begin using hand-held thermal imaging devices that will allow them to navigate through thick smoke and detect heat patterns without having to search blindly.

"Different materials absorb heat differently and that signal is radiated back," Capt. James Hickey said. "This will make our job a lot easier."

Using technology devised by the military, the devices allow firefighters to see heat rather than light. When pointing the devices into a dark, smoky room, images appear on a screen allowing firefighters to locate victims, pinpoint the sources of fires and detect structural dangers before they cause injury and death.

The department purchased about 40 of the devices with a $500,000 federal homeland security grant. Each truck and engine company will have one, Hickey said. They cost about $9,000 apiece, but there are additional costs for batteries and other auxiliary equipment.

Fire department spokesman Bob Leinbach said the size of the department and the cost had made the equipment unattainable for Clark County until now.

Las Vegas Fire and Rescue was the first department to purchase the devices in 1997, spokesman Tim Szymanski said. The department bought six at about $25,000 apiece.

The devices are kept on the ladder trucks because they usually respond to every fire.

"Someday every firefighter will have one, but not right now," Szymanski said. "We don't have the money in the budget for them."

Last week, Clark County firefighters received training on how to use the devices at Escondido Village, a vacant condominium complex slated for demolition near Maryland Parkway and Russell Road. McCarran International Airport owns the complex and allows the fire department to use it for practice sessions.

Fires were lit in the condos and, using the imaging devices, firefighters searched for mannequins while others battled the flames.

Firefighters are taught not to depend completely on the imagers because they could malfunction, like any other technological device. Overconfidence could result in injury or death for the firefighter.

The devices also help reduce losses to homeowners because firefighters won't have to chop holes in roofs and rip down walls as frequently to find fires, Hickey said.

"They allow us to find victims faster, get to the fire quicker, and it will save lives and property," Hickey said.