Living and working in Florida, the threat of a hurricane is part of our daily life from June through the end of November. Hurricane Irma impacted the entire state just a week ago and many of us are still dealing with power outages, gas shortages, and property damage. As with all things in life, knowledge is power when dealing with a storm of this magnitude. Two mobile apps were invaluable sources of information that helped us all weather through Irma.
Florida Storms
Developed by the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network (FPREN), The Florida Storms mobile app offers an easy way to stay informed about potential weather hazards with real-time information from the nearest Florida public radio station. The app provides a weather map with a 1 hour past loop and future radar up to 48 hours, including current temperatures, wind speeds and lightning data. The app offers information about emergency preparedness, multiple news feeds of real-time watch and warning information, and live radio streaming of the nearest FPREN partner station. It also offers customizable push notifications from the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center.
Florida Storms is available for both iOS and Android and uses state-of-the-art weather tracking and forecasting technology, supplemented with up-to-date information from meteorologists at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.
GasBuddy
The GasBuddy app has been around since 2000, offering up to date information on the cheapest gasoline in your area. Relying on users to list prices of stations, the app has long helped consumers avoid higher-than-average gas prices and save money. GasBuddy recently rolled out a new feature that indicates stations that still had gasoline as Hurricane Irma approached.
Because the entire state of Florida was impacted by Hurricane Irma, most households gassed up their cars, generators, and extra gas cans in preparation for the storm. Gas stations experienced long lines and many ran out of gas. The GasBuddy app was an invaluable and accurate resource for locating gas stations that still had gas before, during and even several days after the storm.
Is there an app you would like for us to review? If so, let us know! If you are interested in learning how mobile technology can help your business contact us for a FREE technology assessment. We are a big proponent of integrated “deskless” technology. In fact, our RevITup Business Care Series includes FREE smart device management for 1 smartphone and 1 tablet for each user. We love finding apps to make you productive!
