In light of the recent hurricanes that impacted much of the East Coast, as well as the fires in Los Angeles, the importance of disaster preparedness has never been more evident.
Join us as we host a virtual fireside chat with Watch Duty Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Dave Merritt, as he shares with us the creation of the Watch Duty App, a crucial piece of technology which alerts users of nearby fires and firefighting efforts in real-time. Dave will discuss his experiences with keeping the public updated throughout the catastrophic Los Angeles wildfires, which were among the most destructive in recorded history. Dave will be joined by one of Watch Duty’s very own reporters, Sara Paul, who will share what it is like to report on natural disasters and how best to stay prepared when an emergency strikes.
In addition to our fireside chat, we will share real-life stories and lessons learned, provide actionable tips, resources and programs/nonprofits you can leverage post disaster. We will also explore and demonstrate how to leverage AI technology and tools to prepare for the unexpected. Don't miss this opportunity to enhance your readiness and protect yourself and your loved ones.
David Merritt is the Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of Watch Duty, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing real-time wildfire alerts to the public. With a strong background in software engineering, he has held key roles at companies like Zenput and Fluxx, specializing in developing scalable and impactful technology solutions. Passionate about using technology for public safety and crisis response, David leads the technical vision at Watch Duty, ensuring communities have access to accurate, timely wildfire information. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering (Operations Research) from The George Washington University and continues to drive innovation in mission-driven software development.
Sara Paul is a staff reporter for Watch Duty. She is a certified community wildfire mitigation specialist and a fire reporter. Sara has managed the Sonoma County Fire Updates Facebook group, a resource for vegetation fires, threatening weather and evacuation preparedness, since 2017. She’s on the board of Safer West County, active in Fire Safe Monte Rio and is involved in the West County GMRS project, educating the community about emergency communications. Sara holds FEMA IS-100 Incident Command, FEMA IS-29 PIO Awareness, and FEMA IS-4 Social Media in Emergency Management certifications, as well as Community Wildfire Mitigation Best Practices certification (through Coalitions & Collaboratives) and Wildland Fire Assessment Program (WFAP) certification (through Fire Safe Sonoma).
In addition to Dave and Sara, the second half of this event will be a panel discussion with individuals from each ASGN segment sharing advice and tools.
Key Resources
- Natural Disaster Toolkit - https://www.naturaldisaster.tools/
- Natural Disasters Resource One Pager - https://www.apexsystems.com/sites/default/files/documents/crisis-support-resources-natural-disasters-panel-with-watch-duty_0.pdf
- Event Recap Checklist - https://www.apexsystems.com/sites/default/files/documents/survive-and-thrive-natural-disasters-checklist.pdf