Watch Duty: Wildfire & Floods
Description
Watch Duty is the only disaster mapping and alert app powered by real people giving you real-time information on wildfires and floods vetted by trained professionals, not robots or AI. While many other apps rely solely on government alerts, which can often be delayed, Watch Duty provides up-to-the-minute, life-saving information through a dedicated team of active and retired firefighters, dispatchers, first responders, and reporters who monitor radio scanners around the clock. We aim to keep you informed and safe with real-time updates and alerts. Disaster Tracking Features: - Push notifications about nearby safety impacting floods, wildfires, and firefighting or emergency response efforts - Real-time updates as conditions change - Evacuation orders & shelter information - Active fire perimeters and progress - Flash flood warnings and threat levels - Current and projected river gauge flooding levels - Infrared satellite hotspots from VIIRS and MODIS - Wind speed and direction - Power outage size and estimated resolution time - Historical wildfire perimeters - Air quality readings - Street and satellite maps - Air attack and air tanker flight tracker - Save locations for quick access on the map Watch Duty is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Our service will always remain free of charge and free of ads. You can support our mission with a $25/year membership, which grants access to special features as a token of our appreciation. Disclaimer: Watch Duty is not affiliated with any government agency. The information provided in this app is sourced from publicly available and trusted sources, including but not limited to government agencies, radio transmissions, and satellite data. Specific government sources include: - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: https://www.noaa.gov/ - VIIRS: https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/data/instruments/viirs - MODIS: https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov - National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC): https://www.nifc.gov - California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE): https://www.fire.ca.gov - California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES): https://www.caloes.ca.gov - National Weather Service (NWS): https://www.weather.gov/ - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): https://www.epa.gov/ - Bureau of Land Management: https://www.blm.gov/ - Department of Defense: https://www.defense.gov/ - National Park Service: https://www.nps.gov/ - US Fish and Wildlife Service: https://www.fws.gov/ - US Forest Service: https://www.fs.usda.gov/ For more information or support, feel free to contact us at support.watchduty.org. Privacy Policy: https://www.watchduty.org/legal/privacy-policy
What's New
This release includes various improvements and fixes.
Details
- Developer
- Sherwood Forestry Service, Inc.
- Main Category
- News
- Version
- 2026.7.8
- Version Release
- 2026-07-14
- Initial Release
- 2021-08-10
- Size
- 72 MB
- Age Rating
- 4+
- Price
- Free
- Languages
- EN, ZH, ES, TL, VI
- Bundle ID
- org.watchduty.app
- Version Rating
- ★ 4.93 (43,601)
- First Seen
- 2026-05-28
Metadata updated 2026-07-19
Rank History
Free · Max 90 days · Top 5 categories shown (Y-axis: rank, lower is better)
Free Rankings
Paid Rankings
No rankings
Competitive Benchmark — News Top 10
What it takes to beat this app — comparison with the category's top apps. The orange row is the current app.
| # | App | Price | Rating | Ratings | Langs | Last Update |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | X | Free | ★ 4.58 | 10,872,847 | 41 | 2026-07-15 |
| 2 | Free | ★ 4.76 | 3,457,156 | 32 | 2026-07-15 | |
| 3 | CrimeRadar Dispatch Audio | Free | ★ 4.89 | 28,518 | 2 | 2026-07-18 |
| 4 | Watch Duty: Wildfire & Floods | Free | ★ 4.93 | 43,601 | 5 | 2026-07-14 |
| 5 | Substack | Free | ★ 4.87 | 492,369 | 15 | 2026-07-13 |
| 6 | NewsBreak: Local News & Alerts | Free | ★ 4.78 | 1,369,655 | 2 | 2026-07-17 |
| 7 | Nextdoor: Neighborhood Network | Free | ★ 4.71 | 2,109,860 | 9 | 2026-07-15 |
| 8 | The White House | Free | ★ 4.58 | 1,135 | 1 | 2026-07-14 |
| 9 | Ground News | Free | ★ 4.72 | 45,869 | 1 | 2026-07-06 |
| 10 | Citizen: Safety & Live Video | Free | ★ 4.72 | 509,335 | 0 | 2026-07-16 |
User Reviews
Necessary to have. Also shows aqi and prompt notifications.
I work out of town a lot, as a traffic control tech I use this app often to keep track of fires near my work zone or to keep track of my friends and family back home when I’m out of town working. With this app, I have more confidence when I’m away at work knowing I can focus on the task at hand and still be able to plan for those just in case moments. Keep up the good work!
I get some good info on fires that I monitor especially where my firefighters are on the line and on fires that they may be deployed on. For me it’s all about making the safest decisions possible.
This fire map is the easiest to read, customize and understand. Living in the mountains of Colorado makes a tool like this critical!
As a kid of a firefighter living in a high wildfire zone this app is a God send. It provides fire location, size, containment, efforts, power outages, plans, evacuations both current and on deck neighborhoods and PLANNED BURNS - all in one user friendly and attractive app. Great work Sherwood!! (I became a member to support the effort. They may even save lives. 🙏🏻)
Very accurate & reliable emergency information
Thank you for empowering us to save our communities. Your app helps relieve some of the anxiety caused by the threat of fire. I love our woods but am on alert all summer.
I couldn’t even view anything because it showed a screen about critical alerts and no way to click off of it so it just stops being useful there for an iPhone SE user
Network news does not provide information on fires anymore in Utah beyond 2.5 minutes per broadcast. The work your team does is essential imho.
I just found out about this app three weeks ago. After having three fires in Saratoga Springs, Utah. And now I’m watching the iron fire. Thank you so much for creating this app and staying in communications with all the emergency departments that all of us citizens, public citizens, can follow and be prepared for any wildfires in our area. Thank you again
Watch Duty is using Silicon Valley capital and a hand-picked board of emergency officials to privatize the distribution of public crisis data—turning what should be a transparent public service into a gatekept, state-sanctioned app monopoly.
It would be nice if this app could also cover earthquakes and tsunami’s. Great app though! Thank you for keeping us updated!
Reviews are collected only for apps with detected changes (new entries or sharp risers).