Preventing Vicious Wildfire Damage?!

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Courtesy: AccuWeather
Dr. Cliff Mass, a meteorology professor at the University of Washington, has a fascinating idea to prevent terrible wildfires like the ones of the last few days: use precision short-term weather forecast models to identify areas where extreme winds will occur and then kill the power before sparks or a fallen line can start a fire.

There is precedent. When violent tornadoes are moving through an urban area, the power is cut in the area of the tornado and, on occasion, just ahead of the tornado's path. This prevents fires in the damaged areas. Power was proactively cut in the path of Hurricane Irma if media reports were correct.

Of course, there are pro's and con's to Cliff's idea. It is certainly worth considering.

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