The fire-tracking application Watch Duty has emerged as an essential resource for Los Angeles residents facing the threat of ongoing wildfires.
According to Maxwell Zeff of StartupSuperb, the application operates with the support of a network comprising active and retired firefighters, first responders, government officials, and volunteer reporters who monitor radio frequencies to provide timely updates on current wildfire activities.
During this week’s wildfires, when official alerts were often unreliable or inaccurate, Watch Duty surged to the top of the charts on Apple’s App Store. In a recent interview with The New York Times, CEO John Mills reported that the app had been downloaded 2 million times since Tuesday and attracted 14 million unique users during the week.
Mills stated that the app is managed by a nonprofit organization primarily funded through donations, employing 15 full-time staff members along with 200 volunteers. He emphasized that Watch Duty gathers minimal personal data from users and has no plans to sell any data.
“I owe it to my community to not be a disaster capitalist,” he asserted.