A wildfire traveling through trees (image via Getty Images) After Mayor Kirk Watson declared a state of disaster August 15 due to rampant wildfires, Council is considering a major investment in wildfire prevention to the tune of $3 million at its Thursday meeting. Austin is uniquely vulnerable to wildfires because of extensive damage to the tree canopy from the winter storm this year, plus extended drought conditions that Central Texas has been experiencing for months. To address that vulnerability, Austin Energy wants to contract with Pano AI Inc .

https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2023-10-06/council-to-consider-3-million-five-year-contract-for-wildfire-prevention-tech/

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