Buffalo VFD firefighters respond to a recent accident.

With the help of federal funding, the Buffalo Volunteer Fire Department is purchasing a device that will help firefighters find victims trapped inside burning structures.

The thermal imaging camera can not only detect body heat inside a burning home, it can also help emergency workers find wreck victims who may have been ejected from their vehicle.

The camera will be the only one of its kind on the eastern side of Cherokee County and in Blacksburg. Currently Gaffney and Corinth fire departments have similar technology.

Fire chief Josh Parker said the equipment will be available for other departments when it’s needed.

The grant will also provide the fire department with two new skid units that will be utilized on two new brush trucks the department plans to purchase in the near future.

Fifteen nozzles of various sizes will also be purchased as part of the grant as well as wildland gear that can be used to fight field and wildland fires. That gear is more lightweight and less bulky, but still gives the firefighters the protection they need.

Buffalo received a grant for approximately $60,000 last year to purchase air packs and a cascade system.

“Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) office personally called the fire department,” Parker said. “I felt honored.”

Buffalo will receive a $51,935 grant from the Federal Emergency Manage-ment’s Agency Assistance to Firefighters program to cover the cost of the equipment. The department is responsible for raising 10 percent of those funds.

The firefighters will help to raise part of their share through this weekend’s haunted house at the fire department on Blackwell Road off Highway 5. It is scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday beginning at 7 p.m.