West County EMS & Fire Gets New Thermal Imager

The on Wednesday received a new thermal imager, which uses infared technology to help identify hot spots while fighting fires.

The thermal imager was donated by Eagle Bank and Trust Company, which also gave thermal imagers to 11 other St. Louis area fire departments, including Arnold, Brentwood, Festus and Kirkwood. The donations are part of the bank's celebration of its 100th anniversary, a bank representative said.

Thermal imagers can help save the lives of both firefighters and victims during fire rescues, especially when heavy smoke is an obstacle.

Bank spokeswoman Susan Evans told Patch the thermal imagers cost approximately $5,000, and were donated to make their anniversary focus on the neighborhoods the bank serves rather than the bank itself.

All 12 departments had at least one thermal imager already, Evans said, but those consulted said additional imagers would be helpful. West County EMS and Fire Protection District received its thermal imager Wednesday.

"We are very grateful for this gift. This equipment uses infrared technology to see through the darkness and smoke encountered in structure fires and helps firefighters locate victims, search for hidden fire and recognize potentially life-threatening dangers faster," said Kim Bacon, spokesperson for the West County EMS and Fire Protection District.

According to Eagle Bank, Missouri has been ranked as the 10th deadliest state when it comes to fire deaths, with an average of 120 fire deaths annually and this donation is an effort to help prevent those deaths.