The Caribbean Coastal Ocean Observing System (CARICOOS) released the application Pa ‘La Playa. This app was developed to provide information on weather conditions, waves, water quality, among other data, from over 100 beaches in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. This app had over two thousand downloads during the summer months of 2018 plus numerous positive reviews by users.

The app provides official information from the National Weather Service, CARICOOS, the Environmental Quality Board, and the Surfrider Foundation. It is a direct collaboration between the CARICOOS scientists and the DDA Group developers, in order to provide information to the beach public and promote beach safety. We have kept the beach goers very close to us during this effort. They are the ones who have dictated the information to be presented, the format and even the name of the application.

In response to our users who are boat owners, CARICOOS will be developing a boating app, to promote safety and provide valuable information to small craft operators.