Wildfires

A growing number of lookout cameras stationed across California to locate and monitor wildfires will soon be equipped with artificial intelligence technology to speed response to fires and other natural disasters.

The ALERTCalifornia network has the capability to funnel data to researchers studying the multiple environmental causes of wildfires, while also granting the public and first responders real-time visual access to detect threats.

The 12th cohort of the New York-based urban tech accelerator includes four companies with a government focus, as well as participation from a new venture capital partner.

The county has partnered with Pano AI tech to monitor for wildfire activity. The technology uses high-definition cameras and artificial intelligence to help spot fires, check fuel conditions and zero in on specific locations.

The imagery and intelligence technology relies on private aircraft, crowdsourcing and even the U.S. Forest Service to provide tactical data to first responders and residents. Bridger recently said it would go public.

Heat waves have hit cities around the country this summer. With extreme heat and heat-related disasters projected to increase, local governments are considering the ways they can help mitigate risk.

Through the Love My Air program, the city of Denver is empowering residents and public officials alike to make better decisions with data related to air quality for personal and public health.

Some residents in the path of the massive Northern California wildfire say they did not receive emergency evacuation alerts from Siskiyou County’s CodeRED system. The fire has killed four people.

King County, Wash.,’s new 12-point Wildfire Risk Reduction Strategy enlists the expertise of 29 different local entities but also calls on the public and private forest landowners to do their part to mitigate wildfire risk.

Cities, especially those in fire-prone areas, are increasingly exploring tech-based alternatives to traditional fireworks shows. While not everyone is a fan of the switch, officials are discovering unexpected benefits.

Greenville, "a small town with a soul," is home to the largest community in the Indian Valley with about 1,000 people. It’s a town of history with buildings that date back to the mid-1800s and businesses that tote Gold-Rush era artifact.

As the 55,000-acre McKinney fire continued to burn in California’s Klamath National Forest on Monday, emergency crews encountered increasingly grim evidence of the wildfire’s extraordinary and explosive growth.

The McKinney Fire, in a Klamath Mountains subrange west of Yreka, raced across 20,000 acres overnight Saturday and had devoured 52,498 acres as of Sunday evening, the largest fire now burning in California, state and federal fire agencies said.

Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., recently took a step toward becoming the first city in its area to install wildfire cameras that can detect the initial wisps of smoke that could portend a potentially devastating fire.

On Tuesday, King County released its first-ever Wildfire Risk Reduction Strategy, a 12-point plan to bolster the region’s ability to prepare for, respond to and recover from large burns.

“The reason we’re still showing at 0% contained, there is hot ash, hot tress still throwing stuff over the line causing us concern,” said Mike van Loben Sels, Cal Fire Madera/Mariposa/Merced unit chief.

Although not as large or destructive as the August Complex fire in 2020 or the Dixie fire in 2021, experts worry the Oak fire is the start of what could be a particularly difficult wildfire season in California.

Highs hit 111 in Duncan Tuesday. Meanwhile, fires broke out in Empire as a garbage truck went up in flames. Shortly after, another burned bright near Clear Creek Lake , which resulted in home evacuations.