Halifax has been without an AI wildfire surveillance system since October when the pilot project ended.
For residents who were directly impacted by the Tantallon wildfires and for councillors in districts in which these towers were located, this is the first time they’re hearing the program is offline.
“It’s a bit of a dangerous time to maybe not have all things focused on the task at hand,” said Richard O’Fegan, Westwood Hills Residents Association president.
He says he was excited when he first heard about the FireScout pilot program that ran from March until October 2024.
O’Fegan viewed it as a step in the right direction for wildfire prevention, especially after his community was burned down in the 2023 Tantallon wildfire.
He’s now disappointed to hear the program was quietly paused.
“We’re not approaching anytime soon that there’ll be less wildfires that occur, so investments in that area and really communicating to the greater community of what the efforts are … is very, very crucial,” he said.
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The pilot program saw AI surveillance cameras installed to monitor areas for smoke and fire on a 24/7 basis. The cameras were installed in Hammonds Plains, Lower Sackville and Musquodoboit Harbour.
Halifax Fire deemed the pilot a success but says it was ended after the company running the software discontinued their service.
Global News reached out to Alchera X, which built FireScout, but did not hear back by deadline.
Halifax Fire declined an on-camera interview, but Deputy Fire Chief Dave Meldrum says in a statement they are working with staff to assess the results of the pilot.
Currently, there is no completion date on the assessment or information on when procuring a new service will start.
Coun. John Young says the city should have taken more steps to ensure there wasn’t a gap in service and that residents were informed.
“We don’t want to be left behind like we were before in trying to put things together as they happen,” said Young.
“We have to be more preventative, we have to be more precautionary and also … we have to do things a little different than how they’ve been done in the past.”
— with a file from Rebecca Lau
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
