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After the hose and the water tanker, the next weapon
in fighting bushfires could be the Internet. Computer scientists from the
University of Adelaide have developed a model of the Adelaide Hills
incorporating such details as the terrain, vegetation, fire histories and land
usage. By taking into account wind speed and direction, temperature and humidity
a model of a fire can be created. Using a laptop computer, a mobile phone and the
Internet, firefighters in the field can access the model and simulate the likely
spread of a real fire. The information gained can be used to dispatch firefighters
and equipment. Peter Eklund from the university’s Department of Computer
Science believes that the system will be more efficient than the current methods
used to determine fire fronts which rely on aerial surveys by helicopters and the
marking of dots on a map. The model, based on software from Maptek in Adelaide,
is being further developed so that a three dimensional image of the terrain and
the spread of the fire can be obtained.