Thermal Imaging Camera Credited for Saving Child

Indiana Firefighters Rescue Child After Older Brothers Start Fire.

Tuesday, October 19, 1999 - 2:30pm

Franklin, IN -- When firefighters arrived on the scene of a house fire on October 9th, flames were shooting out the front window, while black smoke filled the structure.   And two year-old Zachary Sheets was still inside.

His father was able to evacuate his two older sons but was unable to retrieve Zachary, the youngest, because he couldn't navigate through the thick smoke that had permeated the house.

Franklin Firefighters Tim Coble and Mark Hash rushed in and began searching for the boy with a Thermal Imaging Camera. Within minutes they saw the heat signature of Zachary's body on the camera screen. Zachary was lying face down in the hallway outside of his bedroom. He was barely breathing.

"If we hadn't had the camera, Zachary's chances of surviving would have been slim," said Captain Mike Herron, Director of EMS for the Franklin Fire Department. "It would have taken us a lot longer to search for him, and by then, it probably would have been too late."

Zachary's 3 and 4 year-old brothers had started a fire in his bedroom closet with a cigarette lighter while their father was asleep. Zachary is still in critical condition at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, officials said.

Thermal imaging cameras are revolutionizing the fire industry. These sophisticated devices, sold for $15,000 to $22,000 per camera, enable firefighters to see heat rather than light. They can help find unconscious victims in smoke-filled rooms, pinpoint the sources of fires, and detect structural dangers before they cause injury and death.

The thermal imaging camera used to save Zachary Sheets is made by Bullard, one of a half-dozen or so manufacturers of the high-tech devices that have been credited for saving at least a dozen lives over the past two years.

Article courtesy of Firehouse.com News

NICOLE LOZARE
Firehouse.Com News