STRONG HAND

By Tom Patterson

The application of geospatial technologies to wildfire management is not a new phenomenon. As a 30-year veteran of public service land management and what the industry technophiles term an early adopter, I've taken a continuing active role in employing the latest mobile GIS technology during and after fire storms. Most recently I've been able to put to use an important technological change that I've found is one the best new tools for fire management since the shovel.

Maps are essential tools for fighting wildfires. Whether for preparing operational assignments, documenting damage assessment, displaying potential spread scenarios, maps that provide timely and accurate intelligence are critical to managers to help deploy resources safely and assess the overall impact of the fire.

It wasn't too long ago that firefighters had to carry a full-sized 10-pound notebook computer, a 2-pound GPS unit, cell phone and extra cables, batteries, and an external antenna to provide incident commanders with up-to-date information. More recently the devices have grown smaller. Handheld personal data assistants running mobile mapping software and lighter-weight GPS receivers have been used successfully by firefighters in the western states.

The importance of having up-to-date real-time information about the status of an on-going wildfire can't be overstated. This was particularly true during the 2003 Southern California fire storms. The best example happened during the Grand Prix Fire. As the fire was coming down off the mountain and moving into the city limits of Rancho Cucamonga, I was able to download and display the current perimeter shapefile on my handheld computer and show the structure group supervisor accurate fire information — which was 10 seconds old.

The paper map he carried that had been distributed during the morning briefing was more than 10 hours old, and it depicted the fire's edge located up on the ridgetop. Information was transmitted by establishing a peer-to-peer wireless local area network connection between the GPS mapping helicopter's on-board computer and the PDA I carry on the fireline. I had to wait until the fire had been completely flown and the helicopter was within about a quarter mile before I could connect. Although this near — real-time information capability proved to be extremely useful, it wasn't until the Paradise Fire two years later where we witnessed the geospatial information transmitted through the radio in true real-time speed.

During an initial-attack phase of a wildfire, it's often difficult to obtain detailed information from an outdated paper map. Using GIS, this information is available immediately and can be viewed under extreme conditions. GIS can produce maps showing transportation routes, facilities, air hazards, spread prediction, operations and other geographic information important to the incident command.

Now I use a rugged — it's not only waterproof, it floats! — handheld sub-meter GPS unit loaded with ArcPad mobile mapping software and 2GB of GIS information for the area I'm in. The result is a completely new level of mobility, convenience, accuracy and integration than has ever been possible.

When I get a fire call, navigating to the fire scene with the aid of the handheld unit is just the beginning of tasks ahead for this rugged high-performance GPS receiver. Once on scene, the device becomes a multi-purpose tool to direct firefighters and ensure safety. Once the fire is out, the unit can map it to determine jurisdictions for apportionment of suppression costs.

When looking for a handheld unit, all-in-one features that I find particularly useful are sub-meter accuracy, huge data storage and convenient communications ports.

Sub-meter accuracy is very important, especially when allocating among jurisdictions the cost of expensive suppression efforts. It always amazes me how far off we can be in estimating the size of a fire. At night the fire always seems larger and in difficult terrain. Accuracy is important. For example on one recent small, approximately 600 acre, fire bordering Joshua Tree National Park, suppression efforts for aircraft and ground support needed to protect homes cost about $500,000.

It's very important that my calculations be accurate. In this case, 30 seconds after I turned on the device, it locked on to a WAAS signal, and I walked the cooled fire perimeter in the park knowing that I was getting sub-meter real-time accuracy. This accuracy gives me confidence in the data used to apportion costs that I'm providing to multiple jurisdictions involved.

With the 2GB of storage via a secure digital card, I'm able to load and instantaneously access layer upon layer of detailed information, including topographical maps, aerial photos, land ownership boundaries, dispatch zones and roads and cities, for virtually any fire scene in the California desert from the Mexican border to more than 350 miles northwest to Bishop. In fact, I can add even more memory if I'd like.

The unit will recognize any size portable USB drive. I carry a 300GB Maxtor drive stuffed full of large datasets covering the whole state of California. When I plugged it into the device one day just for fun, it worked! Of course the drive requires an external power source, but the unit can power the smaller USB drives that you often see people attaching to their key chains.

Previously, I was required to lug the information around in huge binders on compact disks. It was very time-consuming to search for the information needed to make immediate decisions. Now, all I have to do is punch in the dispatch zone, say zone 82, and the device will display which resources will be responding on the first and second alarms. I now have available aerial maps to complement area topos to better evaluate the terrain for safety and escape route planning. Other examples include entering coordinates for the fire and bringing up a land ownership GIS layer to show how close the fire is to Bureau of Land Management land.

Such devices offer a secure digital card slot and Bluetooth capability to provide fast, flexible and easy data transfer and communications. I've been using the Bluetooth connection to a digital camera to record and display georeferenced photos. Having a before and after picture of homes destroyed by the fire in their exact position on a map has proven to be invaluable for damage assessment documentation. The device is also capable of connecting to a Bluetooth-enabled cellular phone that can be used to transmit these images to a FTP server.

In addition to accessing data from the SD card, I like the ability to connect the device via the USB port to access data on my 300GB Maxtor hard drive or my laptop. In addition to the ruggedness, other features I particularly appreciate are the full-color daylight-readable display, the touch keyboard and all-day battery that's field replaceable.

Recently, I've had the opportunity to beta-test the MobileMapper CE cable connected to a Thales 25 handheld radio that included its GPS option with some beta enhancements from Thales Communications to receive and transmit the coordinates, in an NMEA string, provided by a GPS receiver.

This too is a significant new advance. This type of setup allows, for example, incident command to keep continual track of their firefighters and know exactly where they are and in what kind of terrain. I understand from Thales Communications that they plan to continue the beta test until they achieve an optimal solution and then release it to the general population. I've been further advised by the company that once released, existing customers will not need to return their radios for upgrade. It will be a field upgrade option that they will be able to download over the Internet.

Because the device is Bluetooth-enabled, it can be connect wirelessly to any similarly enabled device. The further good news to those of us who don't like cables getting snagged in the brush is that the Thales 25 radio will soon be Bluetooth-enabled.

Every fire crew, engine, helicopter, air tanker and dozer has a radio. Just think of the benefits to firefighter safety to simply plug a GPS-equipped ruggedized handheld device into that radio and be able to see, at a glance, the position of all suppression resources in relation to the moving firefront. It isn't necessary or practical that every firefighter carry a handheld computer. An external radio speaker/microphone with a built-in GPS receiver can be programmed to transmit the firefighter's location each time the microphone is keyed or it can be set to transmit automatically at a certain time interval.

This is not a futuristic Star Trek — type fantasy. We can do it now.

Tom Patterson is the assistant fire management officer for the California Desert District of the Bureau of Land Management. Earlier this year and during the current fire season, he had the opportunity to use a prototype model of the Thales MobileMapper CE handheld GPS device.