Why Fire Intelligence Systems Are Becoming Essential During Major Incidents

Major wildfire incidents are no longer managed with observation alone.

Modern firegrounds generate an extraordinary amount of information. Ground crews, aircraft, satellite feeds, weather forecasts, incident reports, mapping layers, thermal data, evacuation zones and infrastructure risks can all be active at once.

The challenge is not simply collecting information.

The challenge is turning information into operational understanding quickly enough to support decisions

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That is why fire intelligence systems are becoming increasingly important across Australia, the United States and Europe.

In large incidents, agencies need more than isolated reports. They need a shared operational picture that can help incident management teams understand what is happening, where risk is increasing and how conditions are changing.

From Fire Reports to Fire Intelligence

Traditionally, wildfire information often moved through separate channels.

A field crew might report changing fire behaviour. Aircraft might provide an aerial update. Weather officers might issue revised forecasts. Mapping teams might produce updated perimeter information. Incident controllers then had to interpret these inputs under pressure.

That model still exists, and operational experience remains essential.

But as incidents grow larger and more complex, fragmented information can quickly become difficult to manage.

Fire intelligence systems are designed to bring multiple sources of information closer together so that decision-makers can form a clearer view of the incident.

This may include:

• fire mapping

• aerial reconnaissance

• weather intelligence

• thermal observations

• satellite detection

• incident reporting

• infrastructure overlays

• resource visibility

• risk information

The purpose is not to replace judgement.

The purpose is to improve the quality and speed of situational awareness.

Australia’s Shift Toward Intelligence-Led Bushfire Preparedness

Australia has a long history of adapting its fire operations after major fire seasons.

The Black Saturday fires in 2009 and the Black Summer fires of 2019–2020 both reinforced the need for better operational visibility during extreme bushfire conditions.

More recently, Australia has continued to explore new approaches to bushfire preparedness, including satellite technology and artificial intelligence. CSIRO has reported that AFAC and CSIRO are working with Earth Fire Alliance and Google Australia support to help prepare Australia for FireSat data, with the goal of improving how the nation detects, tracks and responds to bushfires.

That direction is significant.

It shows that fire intelligence is increasingly being treated not as an optional enhancement, but as part of future bushfire capability.

For Australia, the operational need is clear:

• faster detection

• better tracking

• improved mapping

• stronger situational awareness

• clearer intelligence for incident management teams

The more severe the incident, the more important that intelligence becomes.

The United States: Systems for Decision Support and Situational Awareness

The United States provides a useful example of how fire intelligence systems are becoming embedded into major wildfire operations.

The Wildland Fire Decision Support System, known as WFDSS, is described by the USDA Forest Service as the official system of record for federal wildland fire incident decisions, supporting decision-makers with values-at-risk information and fire modelling based on available science and data.

The US also uses the Wildfire Enterprise Geospatial Portal, or Wildfire EGP, which provides a central source of spatial data for mapping, decision support, business intelligence and situational awareness through tools such as WildFireSA and a GIS data repository.

These systems reflect an important operational principle:major incidents require structured information environments.

During large fires, decision-makers need to see not only where the fire is, but also:

• what values are at risk

• which communities may be exposed

• where resources are positioned

• how terrain and weather may influence fire behaviour

• what intelligence has already been validated

That is the value of decision-support systems.

They help turn multiple data streams into something operationally useful.

Europe and Greece: The Growing Importance of Shared Fire Information

Europe has also invested heavily in wildfire information systems.

The European Forest Fire Information System, or EFFIS, supports services responsible for protecting forests against fires in EU countries and provides the European Commission and European Parliament with updated and reliable information on wildland fires in Europe.

EFFIS forms part of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service and provides tools including current situation viewers, fire danger forecasts, burned area mapping and broader wildfire information products. The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre notes that current wildfire situation data in Europe is sourced from EFFIS and refers to fires larger than 30 hectares.

For Greece, this matters greatly.

Greek wildfire seasons have become increasingly challenging, with steep terrain, strong winds, island geography and densely populated coastal areas creating complex operational environments. In 2025, Greece increased preparedness by deploying a record firefighting force and expanding surveillance drone capability, according to Associated Press reporting.

The 2023 Alexandroupolis/Dadia fire in northeastern Greece was described as the largest recorded in the European Union since 2000, burning roughly 81,000 hectares and requiring extensive international firefighting support.

These events reinforce why shared fire intelligence systems matter.

When incidents cross regions, overwhelm local resources or require international support, common information frameworks become essential.

Why Major Incidents Overload Traditional Information Flows

During a small incident, operational information may be manageable through conventional reporting channels.

During a major incident, the volume and speed of information increase dramatically.

Incident management teams may be trying to understand:

• active fire perimeters

• spot fire development

• changing wind conditions

• evacuation status

• aircraft movements

• crew locations

• road closures

• critical infrastructure exposure

• community risk

• weather forecasts

• forecast fire spread

• mapping updates

Without structured intelligence systems, important information can become delayed, duplicated, misunderstood or difficult to verify.

That creates operational friction.

Fire intelligence systems help reduce that friction by improving how information is collected, organised, displayed and shared.

As Joshua Brookes Allen, Chief Engineer at Airview Fire Recon, notes:

“The value of a fire intelligence system is not how much data it can collect. Its value is whether it helps people understand what matters during a fast-moving incident.”

That distinction is critical.

More data is not automatically better.

Better intelligence is better.

The Role of Aerial Intelligence Within Fire Intelligence Systems

Aerial intelligence has become one of the most valuable inputs into modern fire intelligence systems.

Aircraft can provide:

• broad-area visibility

• updated fire edge information

• thermal observations

• smoke and column behaviour

• terrain context

• operational reconnaissance

• confirmation of reported activity

When integrated properly, aerial intelligence can strengthen the overall operational picture.

This is especially important where ground visibility is limited by smoke, terrain, access restrictions or night conditions.

In Australia, aerial reconnaissance has long supported bushfire operations. In the USA, aerial intelligence increasingly feeds into broader decision-support environments. In Europe and Greece, aerial observation and mapping are becoming increasingly important during fast-moving Mediterranean fire events.

The trend is consistent:fire intelligence systems become more valuable when aerial visibility is connected to decision-making needs.

Intelligence Systems Support Coordination

Major incidents are rarely managed by one team alone.

They often involve:

• local fire agencies

• regional authorities

• national coordination centres

• aviation contractors

• police

• civil protection agencies

• utility providers

• local government

• international support teams

That complexity makes shared situational awareness essential.

Fire intelligence systems can help different agencies work from a more consistent operational picture.

This becomes particularly important during:

• cross-border fires

• interstate deployments

• major evacuations

• international assistance missions

• long-duration fire campaigns

• fires impacting critical infrastructure

The larger the incident, the more valuable a shared operational picture becomes.

Protecting Communities Through Better Information

Fire intelligence systems are ultimately about supporting better decisions.

T

hose decisions may relate to suppression strategy, resource placement, aircraft tasking, evacuation advice, community warnings or infrastructure protection.

For communities, the value is not in the system itself.

The value is in whether emergency managers can understand changing risk quickly enough to act.

Across Australia, the USA, Europe and Greece, the operational demand is moving in the same direction:

• faster awareness

• better mapping

• clearer intelligence

• stronger coordination

• more informed decisions

As wildfire seasons become more severe and overlapping, these requirements will only grow.

Looking Ahead

Fire intelligence systems are becoming essential because the scale and complexity of wildfire response has changed.

Modern incidents are larger, faster, more connected and more information-intensive than in previous decades.

Traditional reporting remains important, but it is no longer enough on its own during major events.

The future of wildfire response will increasingly depend on the ability to combine:

• aerial intelligence

• mapping

• weather data

• thermal information

• field reporting

• satellite detection

• operational decision support

The goal is not to create more complexity.

The goal is to reduce uncertainty.

And during major wildfire incidents, reducing uncertainty may be one of the most valuable capabilities available to emergency services.