New Fire Detection Camera on Bryant Mountain
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LAKEVIEW, Ore. — The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lakeview District, along with help from its partners at the University of Oregon and the University of Nevada, have installed a new fire detection camera. The Bryant Mountain camera is part of a 700-camera network managed by ALERTWildfire. In Oregon, there are now ten wildfire detection cameras managed by the BLM. Planning is underway for one more wildfire detection camera on Acty Mountain, 60 miles east of Lakeview.
The ALERTWildfire website includes background on the development of the camera system. According to the AlertWildfire webpage, “ALERTWildfire is an expansion of the first network, ALERTTahoe, which was a pilot program in 2013 that deployed PTZ cameras and microwave networks in the region surrounding beautiful Lake Tahoe. This initial project was funded through the Nevada Seismological Laboratory at University of Nevada, Reno; the Tahoe Prosperity Center; the Eldorado National Forest; and the USFS Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. Soon after, through a contract with the Nevada Bureau of Land Management, the network quickly grew eastward into northern Nevada where the BLM Wildland Fire Camera Project was born.”
"We are pleased to be working with our university partners in leveraging this technology to help protect the landscape and communities of Southern Oregon,” said Klamath Falls Field Manager Kevin Heatley. “Early detection is a key component of effective fire management."
In addition to lookouts and aviation assets used in fire reporting for decades, the camera system gives fire managers a new way to spot and track wildfires.
A few clicks through the remote, web-based ALERTWildfire system can make the cameras zoom, rotate 360 degrees, tilt, and provide angles from multiple directions. Officials can watch the landscape, weather, and fire behavior in real-time or playback the feed later for another look.
ALERTWildfire video feeds are available to the public 24/7. Check them out at: https://www.alertwildfire.org.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.