SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KERO) — California Governor Gavin Newsom joined state fire officials to announce the state's preparations for the upcoming peak wildfire season.
According to Newsom, California faces new challenges as the wildfire seasons grow increasingly unpredictable due to climate change and rising temperatures. However, the governor highlighted some new tools at the state's disposal, including new infrared technology to allow firefighters to fight wildfires at night.
"We've gone from an old Huey model, 1970 Huey helicopters, to the state of the art fire hawks that, as was noted last year, were used for the first night time suppression efforts in our state's history," said Newsom. "We are] one of the few jurisdictions in the world that are providing that kind of night time wildfire suppression efforts. There will be 12 to 16 of these in our portfolio very, very soon."
Newsom also spoke about a collaboration with the Pentagon to use satellites as a means of pinpointing troublesome spots, along with 3D mapping and AI technology.
The governor said that over the last four years, California experienced the two most extreme fire seasons in its history.
