As local officials work to install sensors along the Los Gatos Creek watershed that use artificial intelligence to detect wildfires, Santa Clara County Supervisor Otto Lee is a recommending that these sensors be installed across the county’s wildland urban interface.
The Saratoga-based FireSafe Council is working with San Jose Water to install 10 sensors across 6,000 acres in the watershed in an effort to protect the water source for millions of Santa Clara County residents.
The solar-powered sensors, which come from the technology company N5 Sensors, measure gas, particulate matter and heat. AI then analyzes that data to detect where small fires may be before they spread. These data also make their way to an interactive dashboard to provide visualization of the sensor data and fire alerts.
These sensors “cover more ground broadly, and can spot fires sooner and earlier, particularly in the smoldering phases of fire right when there isn’t even a visible flame,” said Seth Schalet, CEO of the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council.
The Board of Supervisors serves as the board of directors for the county’s Central Fire Protection District, South Santa Clara County Fire District and Los Altos Hills County Fire District. Given the frequency and intensity of Bay Area wildfires in recent years, Lee noted, “more proactive measures are needed to keep up with this growing danger and protect people, property, wildlife and land.
“The addition of sensors can greatly improve detection time and supplement other fire prevention resources and technology, such as cameras,” added Lee, who represents Milpitas and Sunnyvale on the Board of Supervisors.