Fighting Fire with Knowledge

Fire fighters need accurate, timely and current situational awareness in order to respond effectively to any fire hazard they face. Weather conditions are unpredictable and can cause a bad situation to get worse if you are not tracking the latest conditions. Wind speed and direction, temperature and humidity are factors fire fighters take into consideration especially when digging firelines.

The Kestrel line now includes a full range of meters and loggers, including models with built-in Probability of Ignition (PIG) and Fine Dead Fuel Moisture (FDFM) readings. Wireless data transfer to smart phones and tablets using Kestrel LiNK™ makes communicating real-time conditions easier than ever. Heat stress prediction models help keep personnel safe when working in extreme hot weather conditions.

Controlled Burns

Controlled or prescribed burning is an important technique used in forest management and farming to reduce fuel buildup and decrease the likelihood of serious hotter fires. Since future weather is uncertain it’s important to gather all the necessary readings you can to monitor while conducting these burns. Wind speed, wind gust, average wind, temperature and humidity are all measurements you can take with the new Kestrel DROP D3FW Fire Data loggers. These meters can be left on site to record days of round-the-clock temperature and humidity readings and then can be viewed on a mobile device. This allows you to gather adequate weather information on the day before and the day of a burn. Fuel will not burn when wet and will not burn adequately when relative humidity is too high. Fire control becomes difficult when relative humidity is too low. Now you can take the guess work out of these important factors and manage the burn site to ensure that a fire does not get out of control.