FIRE SAFE CAL FIRE/USFS forest fire surveillance and detection system El Dorado County

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

FIRE SAFE CAL FIRE/USFS forest fire surveillance and detection system El Dorado County

Vicom Wireless Deploys State-of-the-Art Fire Detection and Surveillance System for the US Forest Service and CAL FIRE

SACRAMENTO, CA--(Marketwire - March 9, 2010) - Vicom Wireless, a pioneer in the use of video surveillance and microwave networks for fire suppression applications, today announced that it has completed deployment of its first system for the US Forest Service and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection District (CAL FIRE). Under the two-year program, Vicom Wireless designed and built one of the most cost-effective and advanced forest fire surveillance and detection systems in the world.
"At Vicom Wireless, we agree with President Obama's push to build new innovative, high-speed broadband networks in areas with no service," said James Cinquini, president of Vicom Wireless. "Our system now helps protect over 31 million acres of private and public forests in California, and it serves as a model for other states."
Appropriately referred to by Vicom Wireless as "FIRE SAFE," the new system utilizes multiple high definition Pan Tilt and Zoom (PTZ) cameras that are strategically placed throughout California's El Dorado County. These cameras connect to wireless broadband Ethernet radios that transmit high speed (200 Mbps) video surveillance data back to the command center in Camino, California. Once in the command center, all camera images are displayed on a 52-inch monitor so fire dispatch personnel can view all or only one camera at a time. Each camera displays compass and elevation information that is used to accurately triangulate and precisely locate a fire, establish its size and direction, and identify access roads that could be used for appropriate fire fighting resources.
"The FIRE SAFE system replaces earlier methods of staffing lookout towers and dispatching aircraft that often needed to fly from faraway places at a cost of several hundred thousand dollars a year," said Cinquini. "Our system saves that money and provides the same information at a fraction of the cost. As this surveillance application proves itself, Vicom Wireless stands ready to assist other Federal and State fire agencies to design and deploy their own networks and take advantage of this great technology."
About Vicom Wireless: Vicom Wireless was founded in 2007 by James Cinquini, who has thirty-five years of electrical engineering experience and now specializes in consulting services as well as the design and installation of wireless broadband products and video surveillance systems. For additional information about Vicom Wireless visit www.vicomwireless.com

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Wednesday, March 10, 2010