Residents of Franktown in Douglas County received a timely reminder of the wildfire threat looming over their community, as a small blaze was quickly suppressed, thanks to the alert actions of locals and the aid of modern technology. According to a post on the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page, the fire, discovered this morning, could have been much worse if not for a quick-thinking resident who saw the fire on a security camera and dialed 911.
Drone footage provided by the Sheriff’s Office showed the rapid escalation potential of fires under current arid conditions, despite the fire’s initial modest size. “Patrol deputies captured drone footage that shows just how quickly a fire of this size can escalate under current conditions,” detailed by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office on a social media post. In an attempt to give fire responders an edge in their battle against wildfires, their drones are outfitted with infrared cameras, which makes it possible to detect hidden hotspots invisible to human eyes. Helping ensure the fires are fully doused and significantly cutting down re-ignition chances…