Upon entering the house, all visibility vanishes, and visitors can't see their hand in front of their face. White smoke envelops them, smoke fills their noses, and the only sense that remains is the sense of touch. But when a visitor uses the thermal imaging camera, sight is renewed. Using the camera is like looking at a small television screen. A person using the camera holds it out in front of him or her, and everything in the camera's view becomes clear.
Several people can look into the screen at a time.
The camera uses infrared technology and items are colored based on their temperature. The man on the floor appeared white because of his body heat. Inanimate objects appear darker. Items more than 900 degrees appear magenta, a feature that enables firefighters to spot the source of the fire. Hastings Noon Sertoma president Sandy Milby said the club decided to raise funds for the equipment after it learned Sertoma clubs in other communities were doing the same.