Watch Duty was downloaded 2 million times during this week’s LA fires

Fire-tracking app Watch Duty has become an important source of information for Los Angeles residents threatened by ongoing wildfires.

as TechCrunch’s Maxwell Jeff explainsThe app relies on a network of active and retired firefighters, first responders, official government reports and volunteer reporters who monitor radio scanners to offer real-time updates on active wildfires.

During this week’s fire, where official warnings can be buggy or inaccurate, Watch Duty climbed to the top of Apple’s App Store charts. and in A Saturday interview with the New York TimesCEO John Mills said the app has been downloaded 2 million times since Tuesday and has seen 14 million unique users this week.

Mills said the app is run by a nonprofit primarily funded by donations, with 15 full-time employees and 200 employees. He stressed that Watch Duty collects very little personal data about users and has no intention of selling it.

“I owe it to my community not to be a crash capitalist,” he said.