Calif. firefighters get thermal-imaging cameras

By Robert S. Hong
Pasadena Star-News

PASADENA, Calif. — The Pasadena Fire Department recently added some new equipment to its arsenal with the purchase of two thermal-imaging cameras, courtesy of a $21,000 grant.

The essential items were made available through money provided by insurance provider Bolton & Co., the Fireman's Fund Insurance Co., which gives grants to fire department's throughout the nation. Along with financing the cameras, leftover grant money will go toward department programs, officials said.

The camera's cost about $10,000 apiece, officials said.

"We feel excellent about getting this equipment," said Pasadena Fire Capt. Felipe Niquete. "It makes things safer for us and will make it a lot faster to rescue somebody."

The cameras allow firefighters to see through walls and heavy smoke.

"We use them for rescue, and after we put out the fire we use it to find any hidden fire," Niquete said.

Using technology that recognizes heat, the thermal-imaging camera can detect the amount of heat put out by an object, allowing firefighters to see fire that may be out of sight.

But even more important, the equipment can help them find people trapped in a fire through their body heat.

"Prior to these cameras, we would have to go through the rooms and feel around to see if anyone was there," Niquete said. "With the camera, we can find them really fast."

The cameras can be especially useful when pressed for time, said Fire Capt. Sean English, who used one recently battling a structure fire on Colorado Boulevard.

"They are hand-held and have very powerful and very clear screens," he said. "You can adjust the lens and see exactly how hot something is."

No one was trapped inside the burning structure on Colorado, but the cameras still proved helpful in attacking the flames, he said.

"Instead of having to destroy an entire ceiling, it allowed me to locate where the problem was," English said. "This is like pointing an arrow directly to where the problem is, so we will cause less damage than we would have to searching for something without this tool."

Fireman's Fund officials hope to make things a little easier on the nation's fire departments by helping them pay the costs of the equipment and for other programs.

"These days equipment and other things are so expensive, it's often difficult for them to go out and purchase," fund spokesman Atle Erlingsson said.

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