New system could help predict floods & wildfires

Scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder have developed new modeling systems that they say, could better predict how floods and wildfire will behave.

“This visualization, this ability to preview what the fire is going to do in the next day, has never been available before,” Bill Mahoney, of NCAP said.

Mahoney said the new forecasting technology would help emergency crews respond faster- giving them a head start of up to 18 hours

Those additional hours would give crews time to organize and respond to a flood or fire before it’s too late.

“This research has been going on for a long time, about 15 years. In our opinion it’s time to start bringing those into use for the benefit of society,” said Mahoney.

Researchers said the new forecasting technology looks at how a natural disaster is affecting the weather.

The technology studies that relationship to predict what will happen next.

“The Waldo Canyon Fire, it was one of those larger fires that blew out of control quickly. Weather was a major factor associated with that. There were strong winds. Those are the situations that this fire behavior model can get a grip on. It can take into account the interaction between the fire and the weather,” said Mahoney.

Before the bill goes any further, state lawmakers have to decide if it’s worth a $10 million.

“It’s not cheap, but with hundreds of millions of dollars of damage every year, we think this is a smart investment,” said Mahoney.

A bill to fund the forecasting system will be up for its next hearing at the state capitol in March.