Did You Know There Are 1,200 Real-Time, High-Def Disaster Cameras Throughout California?

These cameras are used mostly for fire observation but they can be adjusted to look around!

"ALERTCalifornia has more than 1,200 high-definition, pan-tilt-zoom cameras deployed across California (as of February 2026), providing a 24-hour backcountry network with near-infrared night vision to monitor disasters such as active wildfires. ALERTCalifornia cameras can perform 360-degree sweeps approximately every two minutes and can view as far as 60 miles on a clear day and 120 miles on a clear night."—ALERTCalifornia Camera System Website

There are two cameras on Mt. Miguel.

Once you open the camera on Mt. San Miguel North or Mt. San Miguel South, just click on the [Tutorial Video] in the upper right corner to learn how to use the cameras.

Mt. San Miguel North

Located in the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge. The Northern range ends just before Skyline Truck Trail to the east.

Mt. San Miguel South

The Mt. San Miguel South camera covers the most southern area of California and shoots into Mexico.

There was a lot of smoke and flames with that last fire in the Wildlife Refuge that seemed so CLOSE to us. I used these cameras to make sure that it was headed away from Bonita-Sunnyside and not toward.

The cameras are operated by ALERT California and UC San Diego.The ALERTCalifornia Camera System website exists to provide users with information to confirm a fire exists only.

If you go to [Images and Video], you can watch a "multiple time-lapse video captured on the cameras of the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles County, CA. These clips show the fire behavior for approximately 40 hours starting at 10:44 a.m. on January 7, 2025. The time-lapses have been sped up."

Cameras and sensors are deployed throughout California to monitor wildfire and disasters in real-time.

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