AI-powered wildfire cameras were in play during Bradley Creek wildfire near Vernon

A pilot project using AI-powered cameras happened to be in the right spot when the Bradley Creek wildfire devastated communities near Vernon.

A series of cameras operated by the company SenseNet have been in place around Vernon for the past three years, and they were another tool in firefighters’ arsenal to help combat this wildfire.

Shahab Bahrami is SenseNet’s chief technology officer and he said the cameras were able to detect the fire and provide updates on conditions throughout the blaze.

“We detected it and sent a notification to the fire department,” told iNFOnews.ca, adding the system helped the BC Wildfire Service and Vernon Fire Department with situational awareness after the fire was detected.

There are cameras on Predator Ridge and Eastside Road, but also in the Bradley Creek area on Tronson Road.

Bahrami said SenseNet worked directly with Vernon Fire Rescue and the Okanagan Indian Band who then relayed information to the BC Wildfire Service.

SenseNet currently has more than 200 monitors spread around B.C.

Bahrami said they have cameras, smoke detectors and use AI to help analyze the data. SenseNet also has mini weather stations that track things like wind speed and direction.

“With AI on the back end it’s like having a brain monitoring 24/7. It doesn’t sleep, never gets tired,” he said.

SenseNet is a Vancouver based company with cameras in 11 countries around the world.

Bahrami said the province needs to see proof before making larger investments into things like SenseNet’s wildfire monitors. He said there are some other countries who are less conservative about spending and are getting on board with camera programs more quickly.

“It doesn’t mean B.C. or Canada is not doing so I believe Canada, especially B.C., is moving forward and has forward thinking leaders that are trying to help communities to adapt new technologies for fire detection and suppression,” he said.

SenseNet claims its cameras detect wildfires within range in 30 seconds, compared to watchtowers which can take minutes or hours. The cameras can use thermal imaging to detect fires at night and send an automatic alert online.

Bahrami said even though the cameras are more effective in some ways, during the Bradley Creek fire they were part of the first layer of detection.

“The cameras of course pick it up first but it doesn’t mean people should not report when they see fire. Sometimes the fires are in blind spots for the cameras so it should be an additional source of detection for cities and communities.”

Vernon Fire Rescue didn’t respond to a request for comment on the use of the AI camera system. It has praised the program in the past.

Like most technology, cameras and sensors are going to keep improving.

“We believe cameras and sensors are doing their job in the right way and they’re becoming better and better,” he said.