Hawaiian Electric Co. said it has begun installing high-resolution video cameras using artificial intelligence technology to help with early detection of ignitions in elevated fire-risk areas near the company’s power lines and equipment.
Company officials said they recently installed the first camera station in Lahaina and have plans to deploy 78 stations in elevated fire-risk areas on the five islands that the utility serves. (The Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative provides electrical service on the Garden Isle.)
The company plans to have half of the cameras installed by September and the rest by the first half of 2025 as part of the $14 million project.
Hawaiian Electric executives said 50% of the project costs will be covered by funds from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, part of a roughly $90 million grant covering costs related to its wildfire mitigation efforts.
“We are continuing to take action to address the growing risks from wildfires across our service territory using a variety of technologies and methods,” Jim Alberts, Hawaiian Electric senior vice president and chief operations officer, said in a news release.
The company is under intense scrutiny and an onslaught of civil lawsuits in the aftermath of the Aug. 8 wildfires that destroyed Lahaina and killed at least 102 people.
Many of the lawsuits allege that the company’s downed power lines sparked the inferno that devoured Lahaina.
Under its recently announced early-detection camera program, the company said each location will have two cameras and provide a 360-degree view.
The cameras will be monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the public will have access to the feeds, company executives said.
“Installing publicly viewable AI-assisted video cameras in elevated fire risk areas will enable the company, fire agencies, and emergency operations centers the ability to identify potential wildfires early and respond quickly,” Alberts said.
Hawaiian Electric is using technology from contractor ALERTWest under a five-year contract with the California-based company.
ALERTWest will install and maintain the cameras and provide the monitoring “by experienced wildfire safety professionals,” Hawaiian Electric said in its release.
ALERTWest’s software is used in fire-prone areas in the West to detect smoke and other early indications of fire in real time, officials said.
The company works with Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, also known as Cal Fire.
Human operators will filter out false positives, and if a suspected ignition is detected, staff will notify Hawaiian Electric and relevant emergency response agencies, according to the Honolulu-based company.
And the public will be able to see the cameras feeds on ALERTWest’s website at alertwest.org.
The software platform’s cameras constantly scan the area surroundings, completing one 360-degree sweep every two minutes, according to Hawaiian Electric. The AI technology can detect changes from previous images and highlight the images, which would then be verified by human operators.
On Hawaii island nearly 30 cameras are expected to be installed.
While the exact locations have yet to be determined, Hawaiian Electric spokesman Alan Yonan told the Hawaii Tribune-Herald that cameras will be deployed at 27 sites on the Big Island, evenly distributed from North Kohala to Ocean View in West Hawaii and from Honokaa to Naalehu in East Hawaii.
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The Hawaii Tribune-Herald contributed to this report.
