Watch Duty Launches in Texas to Provide Real-Time Wildfire Map and Alert System Amid Panhandle Wildfires

Watch Duty has emergency deployed in Texas ahead of schedule due to the horrific wind-driven fires in the Texas Panhandle: Grapevine Creek Fire, Smokehouse Creek Fire, and Windy Deuce Fire

HEALDSBURG, Calif., Feb. 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Watch Duty, the only app that provides real-time wildfire information, today announced that it is expanding its coverage to Texas. As the devastating Panhandle wildfires continue to pose a significant risk to Texas residents, Watch Duty gives residents a powerful new real-time wildfire information tool.  Any interested individual can download the app for free on the App Store, Google Play or at watchduty.org.

Already live across the American West, Watch Duty provides real-time alerts and continued expert reporting for local residents in areas impacted by fast-moving and unpredictable wildfires. Watch Duty delivers these critical updates, all of which are vetted by an expert team of current and former firefighters and first responders, retired dispatchers and reporters, faster than any other available channel or forum. This allows impacted residents to make informed decisions during stressful and uncertain times, when official notices often take exponentially longer, if they appear at all.

"The majority of fatalities occur within the first hour of a fire, meaning every second counts," said John Mills, co-founder and CEO at Watch Duty. "We built Watch Duty to give people who live in wildfire-prone areas a more timely and trustworthy option for receiving critical updates as quickly as possible. When there's a wildfire in or near your area, you'll receive an update directly to your phone, within minutes, and without having to mine through various community groups on Facebook, Twitter or other mass forums, which often contain dated and/or dubious information."

Watch Duty is already trusted by over one million users in the American West and is actively being utilized by fire chiefs, first responders, tanker pilots, and other fire fighting personnel. 

"When a wildfire occurs, panic and confusion are often the first emotions to set in – an especially dangerous reality when you factor in just how unpredictable and fast-moving many fires are," said Jeff Lemelin, Volunteer Battalion Chief for Sonoma County (CA) Fire District. "Watch Duty is providing a vital public service by providing a simple and highly trustworthy option for receiving the key information around wildfire movements, containment status and, especially, evacuation notices, that people need, delivered when they most need it." 

Interested individuals with experience listening to emergency communications and reporting disasters on forums like Facebook and Twitter can apply to be a Watch Duty reporter at https://www.watchduty.org/volunteer.

TEXAS PANHANDLE FIRES ON WATCH DUTY

• Grapevine Creek Fire: https://share.watchduty.org/i/16561
• Smokehouse Creek Fire: https://share.watchduty.org/i/16557
• Windy Deuce Fire: https://share.watchduty.org/i/16560

ABOUT WATCH DUTY
Watch Duty, 501(c)3 nonprofit, provides real-time wildfire information for making informed decisions when seconds count.  Our service is powered by real people – firefighters, dispatchers, and first responders – who diligently monitor radio scanners and collaborate 24/7 to send up-to-the-minute information to your phone. It's free to download on the App Store and Google Play. Learn more at watchduty.org.

SOURCE Watch Duty