New 3-D firefighting program predicts flame direction
New computer-based system will calculate factors such as weather, topography, temperature, wind direction to forecast a fire’s progress.
By YAAKOV LAPPINfire in haredi neighborhood_311(photo credit: Asaf Abras)
The Public Security Ministry unveiled a new hi-tech firefighting system on Thursday that is capable of using sensors to project the future direction and intensity of a blaze.“It is an incredible model, and the first of its kind in the world,” a source from the ministry told The Jerusalem Post.The computer-based system calculates factors such as the weather, topography, temperature and wind direction to create a three-dimensional view of the fire and its future progress on a screen.It was developed by the Public Security Ministry’s Policy and Strategic Development branch on behalf of the Fire and Rescue Service, and is part of a wider effort to ensure emergency services are able to cope with large fires following December’s Carmel disaster, in which 44 people died.The new system will allow fire chiefs to receive an overall estimate of the fire they are facing in real time, and assist in the decision to evacuate populated areas, as well as where to mobilize fire crews.According to the ministry, Israel experiences about 1,000 fires a year, with 70 percent of them occurring from May to September.Earlier this year, the Fire and Rescue Service was placed under the auspices of the Public Security Ministry, which is also responsible for Israel Police.
