As a teenager, Cheri Rickert watched as a fire damaged her home. Thankfully, no one was killed or hurt, but the fear of fire has never left her.
Today the mother of two teenagers is working hard to ensure that her children and others in her community never share her experience. To that end, Rickert is attempting to raise at least $50,000 to allow the McHenry Township Fire Protection District to purchase two Cairns Iris Thermal Imaging Devices, contraptions that allow firefighters to see even in a room enveloped in thick smoke.
Rickert approached fire officials in November seeking the district’s permission to raise funds on its behalf.
“I saw a (television) special about the device . . . and thought our community should have this equipment too,” Rickert, a McHenry resident, said. “I am not doing this for any other reason than the tool could save the life of someone in my family, community or a member of the fire department.”
Since November, Rickert has raised several hundred dollars. However, with each thermal imaging device costing $25,000, Rickert acknowledges she has a long way to go.
To push Rickert’s cause to the forefront, the McHenry Township Fire Protection District invited the Palatine Fire Department to demonstrate one of its helmets equipped with the device at a recent practice burn.
It was thanks to an anonymous donation that the Palatine Fire Department was able to purchase four helmets equipped with the thermal imaging devices more than a year ago. “This is a wonderful tool,” Palatine Fire Capt. Mike Freese said.
Freese said the Cairns helmet is fitted with an infrared-sensing camera mounted along the right side of the helmet and a binoculars-like eyepiece fitted to the helmet front.
“The infrared camera is sensitive to the heat given off by objects,” Freese said. “The heat is translated into a gray scale, which allows the human eye to see objects that would normally be obscured by the thick smoke of a fire.”
As Freese wore the helmet in the smoke-filled building at the practice burn, a cord running from the device to a television set up outside the building allowed Rickert, the McHenry Township firefighters and others to see exactly what Freese saw.
According to Freese, the infrared-sensing helmet is heavier than a normal helmet. And, because the camera is mounted on the right side, normal depth perception is off, which can make it difficult going up stairs.
“However, in a totally dark room you can make out everything from furniture to the silverware on the table,” Freese said.
“When I walked into the smoke-filled building, my partner walked into a room I never even saw,” said McHenry Township firefighter Guy Stedman. “Without the Cairns, neither of us would have known that room was even there.”
The McHenry Township firefighters who took turns trying out the helmet were unanimous about the device’s effectiveness.
“There’s no question that this tool would be a valuable asset,” said McHenry Township fire Chief Chris Bennett. “It takes rescue to a new level, and it would definitely increase the safety of the firefighters.”
The technology was originally developed for night fighting during the gulf war. New Jersey-based Cairns & Brothers Inc. manufactures the helmets equipped with the thermal imaging devices in London.
“I hope the firefighters’ opportunity to experience this equipment will help them encourage the public to support this cause,” Rickert said. “Everyday we do not have this tool there is a greater potential for lives to be lost.”
Rickert said she is committed to raising the funds needed to purchase two of the devices.
“I will continue to make appeals to the community and civic organizations for donations,” Rickert said. “But I am still looking for donations of time and money in order to reach our goal.”
After a communitywide fundraising effort, the Fox Lake Fire Department in mid-December became the first department in the far northwest suburbs to be equipped with a Cairns helmet.
“With this tool, it’s going to be safer for us and allow us to locate and rescue victims faster,” Capt. Tom Predis said. Representatives from the company will begin training Fox Lake personnel in January.
