The nation’s most wildfire-prone state is teaming up with an artificial intelligence platform that “never sleeps” and can detect potential fires before they spiral into chaos.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) is partnering with University of California San Diego’s ALERTCalifornia, a public safety program that studies natural disasters, to test a $24 million AI program.
“We’ve got an automated system that never sleeps, never rests, watching the North Bay 24 hours, seven days a week,” Cal Fire Napa-Lake-Sonoma Unit Chief Mike Marcucci told Fox 2.
California is the state most threatened by wildfires in the nation, with 7,396 recorded wildfires in 2021 alone, and 2.5 million acres burned. The Golden State recorded another 7,447 wildfires last year, which burned a combined 331,360 acres.
WILDFIRES MAY THREATEN INPATIENT HEALTH CARE FACILITIES IN MANY CALIFORNIA COUNTIES, STUDY SAYS
California’s 2018 Camp Fire was the most deadly and destructive in state history, killing 85 people and injuring 17 civilians and firefighters.
LARGEST CALIFORNIA WILDFIRE SEEN FROM NOAA SPACE SATELLITE
The new AI trial will include collaboration with fire units in San Bernardino, Sonoma-Lake-Napa, Madera-Mariposa-Merced, Nevada Yuba Placer, Shasta-Trinity, and San Luis Obispo, according to Cal Fire.
The program will deploy more than 1,000 high-definition, pan-tilt zoom cameras throughout the state that will work nonstop monitoring for smoke or other signs a fire has sparked.
“From the Oregon border to the Mexican border and everywhere in between,” Marcucci said, “cameras are being added as we speak.”
CALIFORNIA’S LARGEST WILDFIRE OF THE YEAR BURNS NEAR YOSEMITE
The high-tech cameras can capture images from 60 miles away during clear days, and 120 miles during clear nights, thanks to its near-infrared night vision.
“They’re mounted on all sorts of different platforms,” Marcucci told NBC Bay Area. “They can spin 360 degrees. They can…
Read the full article here
