Find more of his photos on Instagram, @cole_euken.

Cole is one of Watch Duty's founding reporters. Outside of his Watch Duty role reporting on wildfires, he combines his love of photography with his passion for public service by spotlighting the work of fire departments.

Peak wildfire season may be over, but fires and floods continue year-round. Stay prepared and download Watch Duty.

16 million users relied on Watch Duty to know, in real time, what was happening near them. Wildfires were tracked by real people — nearly 100 trained reporters with careers spanning from first responders to dispatchers — who posted more than 95,000 updates this year.

2026 was one of the largest wildfire seasons in over a decade. Oregon broke its all-time record for acres burned, and Utah had its worst fire year since 2007. And Washington saw more than double the number of acres burned from last year.

Mary worked for most of her career as a dispatcher in California — answering emergency calls and coordinating police, fire, and medical response teams. Now she's a reporter at Watch Duty, helping keep communities around the U.S. safe. 💛

Miranda and team have got your back. 🫡 Our reporters gather information from sources like emergency radio communication, fire cameras, and river gauges for easy-to-understand updates that help you make informed decisions during wildfires and major floods.

"That extra couple of hours allowed me time to think what's the best plan. I think if we didn't have Watch Duty, we would be in a much different situation."

Evacuating was hard for Scarlett, as some of her favorite childhood memories were at Bishop Castle, which her grandfather built himself. The castle is now a public attraction, and Scarlett lives and works there, helping to take care of the property.

At 6:30 AM, Scarlett Bishop's phone woke her up with a Watch Duty alert that the Aspen Acres fire was 4 miles from her home at Bishop Castle. Scarlett and her husband rounded up their animals — 26 chickens, horses, goats, 4 cats, and 3 dogs — with 4 extra hours before evacuation orders hit.

What is meteorology? And how does it help inform Watch Duty's reporting on major floods and wildfires? You've seen insights from Pete, Watch Duty's staff meteorologist, breaking down the conditions behind specific fires, floods, & weather warnings. More on how meteorology shapes what we report👇

Disasterproof spent time with Watch Duty reporters, John, and the firefighters who use Watch Duty in the field. Watch the episode ⬇️

"Watch Duty's growth isn't a success story. It's a failure story." — John Mills, Watch Duty cofounder & CEO Watch Duty started with one idea: put real-time, verified disaster information in one place so people can act when seconds count. Today, 30 million people across the U.S. have used the app.

Eric's childhood dream was to be a firefighter. He joined his local fire department's explorer program at just 14 years old and stayed in emergency response ever since. Now he works as Public Information Officer and serves as a contributor to Watch Duty.

This post originally included FirstNet as a network with Watch Duty capability via satellite data. FirstNet satellite capability is still in limited testing, and Watch Duty functionality will be in place as FirstNet satellite data access becomes fully available.

This is live now, no app update needed. Check your device and carrier to access satellite-based data.

➡️ If you're on T-Mobile, supported devices can connect directly to satellite data. Loading may be a little slower, but you'll still get Watch Duty alerts and core app features, no cell tower required. ➡️ We're working to bring this to more carriers as satellite coverage expands.

When wildfires and floods threaten a community, one of the first things they can impact is the ability to communicate. Now, Watch Duty can reach you by satellite when cell towers can't, so you can keep getting alerts no matter what's happening on the ground.