To combat the raging wildfires that swept across western Nebraska this year, firefighters and emergency management personnel repeatedly drew on information from a key resource — the Nebraska Mesonet weather station network.
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s mesonet stations, operating throughout the state, have high value for firefighters, helping them recognize periods of elevated fire danger and adapt tactics as conditions change, said John Erixson, the Nebraska state forester.
“The mesonet’s real-time information — including wind speed and direction, soil moisture, humidity and temperature — helps firefighters, emergency managers and the team make critical decisions about where to position crews and equipment, how fires are likely to behave and where resources are needed most,” he said…