Mapping system to provide early warning of California fire risk during high wind events

FILE - In this May 14, 2014 file photo, a helicopter drops fire fighting material over a house as smoke envelopes the area in Carlsbad, Calif. Fire-hardened Southern Californians know that when the Santa Ana winds blow, a wildfire probably isn’t very far behind, the only questions are where and how bad it will be. A new mapping tool developed by the U.S. Forest Service will help homeowners and emergency responders get a better handle on both those questions with detailed color-coded early warning system that will indicate which areas have the highest risk of a devastating blaze during the hot, dry wind events. (AP Photo, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this May 15, 2014 file photo, a woman douses around her home with water from a hose as her neighbor's home burns during a wildfire in Escondido, Calif. Fire-hardened Southern Californians know that when the Santa Ana winds blow, a wildfire probably isn’t very far behind, the only questions are where and how bad it will be. The U.S. Forest Service on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2014, rolled out a mapping tool that should help homeowners and first responders get a better idea of just where those fires are most likely to erupt during a Santa Ana wind event. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File) (The Associated Press)