Thermal imaging brings quick end to search

SAGLE — A thermal imaging device is being credited with the swift rescue of an inexperienced sailor who lost his way on Lake Pend Oreille last week.

“With this new tool, it probably saved us three hours of searching,” said Bonner County Marine Patrol Sgt. Ron Raiha.

The marine patrol secured four of the $8,000 devices with grant funding through the state and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, according to Lt. Cary Kelly.

The handheld units display a person or object’s heat signature despite bad weather or darkness.

The patrol has had the devices for about three weeks. The search for the wayward sailor late Thursday night marked the first time it was utilized on a rescue mission.

Raiha said the sailor, a 56-year-old visitor from San Diego, set out from Jeb & Margaret’s Trailer Haven in Hope in a 16-foot Neptune sailboat. The man made for shore near Trestle Creek and walked back to Jeb & Margaret’s.

The man went back to the boat to sail it back to Hope, but he ended up being about three hours overdue, which prompted his wife to phone 911.

The search began shortly before midnight, with Raiha at the helm and Deputy Anker Rasmussen working the thermal imaging device. In just under an hour, Rasmussen spotted the profile of the boat, which was still under sail and heading away from Hope, Raiha said.

The boat was found about a half-mile from Glengary Bay and Raiha said the man seemed to think he was en route to Hope, but also appeared to be experiencing disorientation due to a health condition.

The man was thinly clad in a t-shirt and shorts, and his backup power — a small electric motor — ran out of juice. He had no flashlight, compass, map, phone or paddle.

“He didn’t have any of the emergency equipment that could’ve helped him,” Raiha said.

The marine patrol still uses traditional radar during searches, although that technology is only helpful when deputies are looking for a vessel.