B.C. using 'enhanced technology' to predict wildfire behaviour, officials say

A firefighter performs small hand ignitions on the 2023 McDougall Creek wildfire near West Kelowna. (Image credit: BC Wildfire Service)

Decision-makers will be using "enhanced technology" to predict wildfire behaviour across B.C. during the 2024 wildfire season, officials announced Monday.

The Ministry of Forests said the predictive software will launch in the Coastal and Kamloops fire centres – where it was tested out last year – before being gradually rolled out in the rest of the province.

"As the impacts of climate change evolve, so too must our ability to manage the threat of wildfires in our communities," Minister Bruce Ralston said in a statement.

"By adding more technology to the BC Wildfire Service's tool kit, our talented firefighters will be able to make critical decisions faster when it matters most."

The government said the technology uses weather models, topographical data and fuel maps along with real-time information from the field to predict wildfire growth and movement.

In a news release, the ministry stressed that the software "does not replace the experience and skills" of BCWS staff, but offers decision-makers "more intelligence and more time to plan their operations."

Officials said the technology was used last August, when a lightning storm resulted in 110 wildfires sparking in the Coastal Fire Centre over four days – and that the software managed to produce predictions for 12-hour spread for each new fire within 15 minutes.

"That allowed us to identify which wildfires were a priority for initial attack resources based on their potential to spread and threaten communities," said Greg Boyachuk, senior wildfire officer for the fire centre, in a statement.

The province is testing additional tools to bolster firefighting efforts, including "drones for aerial ignitions, infrared scanning for hazard assessments, and 5G technology for more sensor networks to monitor forest conditions," the ministry said