From California to the Amazon Rainforest, wildfires have been raging around the world in recent months. Australia has experienced its worst-ever bushfire season, with more than 30 lives lost, millions of acres of forest and thousands of buildings destroyed and countless animals killed, highlighting the seriousness and scale of the issue. And with recent research showing that human-induced climate change increases the likelihood of wildfires1, this is a problem that's only going to get worse.
“With recent research showing that human-induced climate change increases the likelihood of wildfires, this is a problem that's only going to get worse”
Drone Fire Rescues
The good news is that technology can help in number of ways. Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), have a wide range of applications with their ability to offer an aerial view making them incredibly useful in the fight against wildfires. This enables firefighters to make a rapid assessment of the situation and quickly identify risks while tracking the fire's progress. Along with regular video footage, thermal imaging can help emergency response teams to see through thick smoke. Thermal scanning can also help to identify hotspots which are a good indicator of where a fire is likely to spread. It can also be used to locate people trapped by the fire and has been used during the recent Australian bushfires to locate injured koalas.2
Drones can also provide floodlights for firefighters and emergency crews working in fire zones as well as helping in search and rescue operations. What's more, drones can be used to assess the extent of the damage after the fire has been put out. For example, French firefighters used drones to survey the damage done to Notre Dame cathedral in Paris after it was devastated by a fire.3
Keeping Us Safe With 5G
Drone technology is constantly improving and the arrival of 5G will give it a further boost. Using a dedicated 5G network could enable drones to send more data in real-time to ground crews. Eventually, drones could even be designed to automatically drop water in the most suitable spot based on real-time observations of the situation from the air.
Another weapon in the fire-fighting technology arsenal is satellite data. Imagery from Earth-observation satellites can be used to search for the thermal signature of fires and locate new wildfires in remote areas that might otherwise not have been spotted. These images allow scientists and disaster management teams to understand and monitor environmental conditions that might lead to wildfires or exacerbate them, making it possible to give early warning to those in the danger zone. The view from space can also help emergency response teams to monitor the progress of the fire as well as the thickness and movement of smoke, which can be a major hazard both in terms of visibility and air quality.
Fighting Fires With AI
The behaviour of fires can be hard to predict but this kind of big data can help. Bringing Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the mix enables experts to gain more sophisticated insights from satellite imagery. Using predictive analytics to analyse satellite images can help to assess the likelihood of a forest fire occurring so that it can be caught and contained before it expands. What's more, AI-powered simulations could even help to predict how a fire might spread so that advance warning can be given.
The technology we use to monitor and combat fires is constantly improving. Combining all of these evolving technologies together gives us a crucial overview of the situation when large-scale wildfires occur. And in future these innovations might enable us to spot and contain fires even more quickly, potentially saving lives.
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