RDGs

(UPDATE as of July 30, 2023: : We don't know the extent of monitoring that has been done since the Telegraph Fire.)

Readily available, proven technology exists for almost immediate deployment in the Pinal Creek watershed to facilitate implementation of an emergency early warning system.

Rapid Deployment Gages (RDGs) are fully-functional streamgages designed to be deployed quickly and temporarily to measure and transmit stream stage data in emergency situations. The speed with which RDGs can be installed allows the USGS to:

• Augment gage networks during floods by adding temporary sites to a network.
• Provide situational awareness and support to emergency managers.

https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/rapid-deployment-gages-rdgs?qt-science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects

Note that some of the RDG technology described above was deployed following The 2010 Schultz Fire on the east slopes of The San Francisco Peaks.  Here is an article about RDG precip gages used after a fire near Durango: https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs03603/fs03603.html

Yavapai County Flood Control District (YCFCD) has been a rural leader is use of technology to understand precipitation and runoff using an extensive network of precip and flow gages.  YCFCD's siren-based emergency warning system within Oak Creek Canyon is a textbook model for others to follow.

"The Yavapai County ALERT System network collects data from 107 rain gauges, 33 water level gauges and 15 weather stations through a network of 7 repeaters. In addition, YCFCD receives data the Flood Control District of Maricopa County which owns and operates 39 gauges in southern Yavapai County (39 rain, 7 stream, 3 weather stations), as well as data from Mohave County which owns and operates two gauges in western Yavapai County (one weather station). All data is received at a base station in Prescott and used to assess potential flooding threats."

http://weather.ycflood.com/yavapai-county-fcd-alert-system-history