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RIFLE, COLO. — (October 21, 2024) — (PDF Version here) The Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting (CoE), a section of Colorado's Division of Fire Prevention and Control (DFPC), participated in the White House FireTech Innovation Roundtable discussion in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, October 17. Hosted by the Biden-Harris Administration, the meeting brought together agency experts, scientists, innovators, manufacturers, purchasers, and industry leaders to discuss and identify solutions to supply-side issues in bringing innovative wildfire monitoring, management, and response technologies to widespread adoption. 

As wildfires continue to threaten communities nationwide, the need for advanced firefighting technologies is pressing. "Our current best practices were designed for legacy fires that historically behaved with far less intensity and before current technology existed. The danger posed by new, large-scale fires has surpassed our capacity to respond. Investing in new technologies that enhance the fundamental principles of fire safety (prevention, detection, and suppression) will save lives," stated roundtable participant and CoE Director Ben Miller.

The State of Colorado is leading the way in firefighting technology with its latest development of the real-time location-based service, the Colorado Team Awareness Kit (COTAK^TM). COTAK^TM offers Colorado public safety agencies a no-cost solution that provides emergency responders with real-time location information and mission-critical data. As one of the first states to offer this service, Colorado remains committed to providing emergency responders with new and effective tools to do their jobs safely. "Our efforts to enhance firefighting operations continue to be the gold standard in the public safety industry, and we're honored to have shared Colorado's initiatives with our nation's leaders," stated Colorado Department of Public Safety Executive Director Stan Hilkey.

Additional discussion topics at the White House FireTech Innovation Roundtable included resource allocation of fire departments, internal technology development opportunities, and supply sourcing. "We hope that our participation in this discussion and our contributions to advanced public safety technologies will inspire other states to explore new approaches to firefighting as well," said DFPC Director Mike Morgan.

The Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting is proud to represent the Division of Fire Prevention and Control and the Department of Public Safety interests and contribute to a national dialogue on these important issues. For additional information on research and development projects, visit cofiretech.org.

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About the Center of Excellence Formed in 2014, the Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting is a research and development organization within the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control. The Center of Excellence is dedicated to bringing the technology of the future to the fireground of today. For more information, visit cofiretech.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn.

The Colorado Center of Excellence’s Comments Regarding the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Fire Operational Requirements and Capability Analysis: Report of Findings

Background

On May 31, 2019, the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a report detailing the findings of an Integrated Project Team  tasked with investigating new and emerging technology that could be applied to wildland fire incident response. In particular, the Integrated Project Team investigated areas of innovation that could be applied to the issue of Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) fires and promote/provide for improved operational response to save lives in WUI fires. The report, titled Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Fire Operational Requirements and Capability Analysis: Report of Findings (hereinafter referred to as “The Report”) is available here:

dhs.gov - Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Fire Operational Requirements and Capability Analysis: Report of Findings

The Colorado Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting (CoE; (cofiretech.org) commends DHS S&T for the comprehensive work detailed in the report. Because several of the areas discussed in The Report touch on areas of active research at the CoE, as well as active operations at the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control (DFPC), it seemed prudent to release a review of CoE projects related to findings in The Report.

About the Center of Excellence

The Center of Excellence was created by the Colorado Legislature in 2014 to study and advance the technology related to wildland fire operations in Colorado. While the CoE’s title includes “Aerial Firefighting,” in fact, the scope of CoE research is broader than just aerial firefighting efforts. As is recognized in the wildland firefighting community, aerial firefighting represents only one aspect, albeit a visible one, of wildland firefighting. Effective response to wildland fires requires an integrated effort that includes bringing multiple resources to the response. The CoE’s endeavors mirror that multi-faceted approach. In addition, while the CoE is focused on wildland fire, many of the CoE’s projects can and do support non–wildland fire response (e.g., structure, vehicle, hazmat) as well as other emergency operations, including law enforcement and emergency response. 

CoE Analysis of The Report

To those skilled in the art of wildland firefighting and WUI fires, few of the items discussed in The Report come as a surprise. Instead, the detailed ranking and analysis of the technologies and solutions adds a layer of structure to a body of common knowledge within the community. Indeed, the seven key findings in Table 1 of The Report are all areas that have been recognized in the community as critical or important to effective management of wildland fires and, in particular, safeguarding the lives of the public and responders impacted by these events.  

The Report does a good job of compiling and prioritizing challenges and opportunities. Furthermore, The Report touches on modern technologies that can and should be deployed on wildland fire and WUI events. Ancillary benefits in response to other natural and human caused disasters become quickly obvious.