Supporting Communities Through the 2025 Storm Season

Forerunner works with communities throughout the country that are frequently affected by storms, flooding, and other hazards. While our partners are seasoned in emergency response and post-disaster recovery, their work can still be overwhelming. The agencies we partner with are entrusted with a wide range of interconnected responsibilities, from resident communication to coordinating damage assessments, all while grappling with the challenges of consolidating resources and providing rapid response across all scales of government.

We’re here to help – our work at Forerunner centers not only on blue sky hazard management but also on the crucial work done in the hours and days after storm events. If you represent a government agency and your community is facing an impending storm or has recently dealt with an emergency, Forerunner can assist you.

For All Communities

Regardless of whether your community is a Forerunner partner, our team is eager to lend a hand. Here are a few ways we can help a government agency affected by a storm event:

Volunteer Data Entry
During and after storms, we can provide Forerunner staff volunteer time to help with remote data collection and entry. We can help augment your team’s time by entering information collected via pen and paper in the field into spreadsheets. This is especially useful for Preliminary Damage Assessments (PDAs).

Volunteer Geospatial Analysis
Need help with digital maps or pulling together data layers to track damage, vulnerability, or resident needs? Our team can assist with GIS analysis, particularly helpful if your internal GIS team is focused on emergent duties or if you do not have a dedicated GIS team.

Emergency Forerunner Access
If you are not a Forerunner partner, we can create a free, no-strings-attached pilot account for your community. You will have access to our full suite of features, including damage assessments, property profiles, and public website tools for up to three months. When the pilot is complete, we export your data in usable formats.

If you are part of a government agency and want to reach out for assistance, please contact us at hello@withforerunner.com.

For Forerunner Community Partners

If you are a Forerunner partner, you already have access to a suite of AI-powered tools built to support both pre- and post-disaster workflows. For 2025, we've expanded our capabilities to give you even more power in the field and at your desk. Here's how Forerunner can support your team:

• Household-Level Damage Assessments: Speed up Preliminary Damage Assessments (PDAs) and Substantial Damage Estimates (SDEs) with mobile-responsive tools. Dashboards update in real-time, helping you fast-track substantial damage determinations. Document damage types, add photos, and make accurate damage estimation simple and scalable.

• Debris Management: Track debris pickups, map locations, and log ticket volumes—automatically generating FEMA-ready records to save you time and reduce manual data entry.

• Public Infrastructure Damage: Field crews can map and document damage to roads, bridges, and utilities, streamlining Public Assistance (PA) documentation and improving your project visibility.

• Resident Communication Tools: Use your public-facing Forerunner website and “Get Help” form to collect resident input, automatically generate logs, and stay connected.
  
  • Public Website Announcements: You can also share banners on the public website with announcements to highlight urgent alerts, guide residents to key resources, and promote critical deadlines. 
  • AI-Powered Letter Generation: Automate letters to residents in Repetitive Loss Areas or those with damage determinations. Customize templates and maintain records by property.
  • Public Records and Submissions: Residents can easily report damages using the public website. Submissions are centralized, streamlining record collection and response coordination.

• Grant Management: Track cost shares, upload compliance documents, and manage project worksheets—all in one place. Stay organized, audit-ready, and stress-free.

• Mailing Automation: Use Forerunner to generate, send, and track resident mailings. Whether you're communicating digitally or through physical mail, our tools reduce manual effort and help ensure no message slips through the cracks.

• Temporary User Access: Need to expand your team quickly? We can add temporary users to your account to support disaster response and streamline collaboration.
• Mobile App: Download maps, work offline, and capture data in real-time from the field -- even in low-connectivity zones.

Beyond core recovery workflows, Forerunner offers several additional features to help your community stay agile and organized ahead of a disaster:

• Custom Property Warnings: Set and display flags for properties requiring assessment or eligible for recovery funding, and track progress.
  
  
• Custom Map Imports: Bring in evacuation zones, inspection boundaries, and post-storm maps to visualize risk and response coverage.
  
  
• Custom Post-Disaster Aerial Imagery: Integrate imagery from NOAA or other sources for a comprehensive, unified view.
  

Your Resilience Partners

Forerunner is built to help support your community when you need it most. If you’re interested in learning more about how communities used our tools in last year’s hurricane season, you can read and watch case studies with Santa Rosa County, FL, Longboat Key, FL, and Hernando County, FL.

To learn more about these features or how to further customize your Forerunner account, reach out to your Account Executive, Customer Success Manager, or contact us at hello@withforerunner.com.