The NSW rural fire brigade is just weeks away from being able to
transmit collated aerial data in realtime to frontline rural
firefighters, enabling them to more effectively quench the thirst of
Sydney's summer bush fires.
"We're very close to actually doing it," Cameron Wade, spokesperson for
the NSW rural fire brigade told ZDNet.
The rural fire service is putting the final touches on its transmittance
of aerial reconnaissance mapping system (ARMS) data "to a computer on the
ground that plots [mapping information] at a firefighting command post
straightaway," Wade said.
A helicopter bound ARMS kit consists of a global positioning system (GPS)
receiver and a computer running Mapmaker software interfaced with
another software program, MapInfo.
MapInfo provides general mapping information, such as the location of
roads and typographical data, whilst Mapmaker superimposes a fire line -
that helps distinguish between burnt and unburnt areas - over the top of
MapInfo.
"Fire coordinators need to get this information to plan strategies to
fight the fire," Wade said.
Until recently, the ARMS data would take up to 20 minutes to reach the
fire coordinators, during which time the fire line would have moved,
rendering the data inaccurate.
To help provide a bigger picture of the fire's spread, to both the
troops manning the blaze and to those deciding on the resources to send,
the ARMs kit is used in conjunction with video and satellite imagery -
culminating in a high-tech visual representation of the fire.
Infrared line scanning, which plots where fires are, as well as digital
stills are also used alongside the ARMS kit.
"One of the hardest things to understand about a running fire is where
it is and where it's been," Wade said.
"Frontline troops can't see the big picture of where the fire is going,
therefore it's very important to get this data to them immediately," he
added.
