HONOLULU (KHON2) — With wildfire risks growing across the islands, Honolulu firefighters are deploying new technology in the sky.
‘Not out of the woods yet,’ fire officials say of dry season and fires
Drones are now helping them spot danger faster, including during the recent Kunia wildfires. When fires erupted in Kunia this summer, Honolulu firefighting crews responded with a whole new view. HFD started deploying drones several years ago, but with more frequent wildfires fueled by drought and arson, technology is playing a bigger role than ever before. “They provide that key information to the incident commander, gives them information on that flow path, where it’s headed, and allows them to make those critical decisions, as far as resource allocation, where they’re going to go ahead and put people on the ground,” said Mike Mendez, Honolulu Firefighter III and UAS Program Lead. Thermal imaging allows firefighters to scan large burn zones quickly and relay information in real time. “It can accurately see almost 1,000 feet away. So it can pinpoint through the smoke exactly where the flames are off, where the fire path is moving,” said Mendez.
Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news
HFD says everything is password-encrypted. “It’s not shared outside of those key needed players like the incident commander, we don’t archive anything like that, and we don’t fly over homes or look at homes or anything like that. We’re simply using it for the situational awareness,” said Mendez…