Seconds are precious in times of emergency.

Thus, any advantage emergency responders have in responding to a crisis is very much welcomed.

With boating season having arrived in Northeast Michigan incidents on the water have increased in recent weeks. Over the past seven days, for instance, Alpena County Sheriff Department deputies have had to conduct two water rescues in the dark. Thankfully those rescues had happy endings.

In order to increase the chances of those happy endings continuing, this week members of the Finance Committee of the Alpena County commissioners voted to purchase a thermal imaging device for the sheriff’s department. The device, which picks up heat signatures in an area being scanned, could be a tremendous help in finding boaters in distress.

At $5,606, the device is not inexpensive. However, if it assists deputies in only one water rescue, it already would have more than have paid for itself. The purchase seems a good one for the region.