By Clint Sanchez · Published · Updated · 3 min read
Quick answer
During Hurricane Ida, Pinnacle Search and Rescue (Cajun Navy 2016) took rescue requests through a WPForms form on their website. Zapier pushed each submission into a Google Sheet for the command post, then sent a real-time alert to the team's Slack channels. That pipeline let volunteers focus on rescues instead of data entry, and the team helped rescue 267 adults, 105 children, and 89 pets.
Key takeaways
- The intake form asked for rescue type, wellness check, debris, contact details, location, and counts of adults, children, elderly, and pets.
- Zapier connected the WordPress form to a Google Sheet automatically, with no code required.
- A spreadsheet alone was not enough: nobody knew a new request had arrived unless they were watching the sheet.
- A second Zap sent every new request into Slack so volunteer rescuers received real-time notifications.
- This was, as far as BlakSheep Creative knows, the first Slack integration into a disaster search and rescue organization.
- The team helped rescue 267 adults (90 of them elderly), 105 children, and 89 pets during Hurricane Ida.
Hurricane Ida came ashore in August 2021 and knocked out power and cell service across South Louisiana for days. Volunteer rescuers working out of Livingston and Ascension Parish needed requests routed to them without a dispatcher typing each one, and a form-to-Slack pipeline built in hours did that job.
The Cajun Navy is a volunteer organization that formed after the August 2016 Louisiana flood. When Hurricane Ida hit in 2021, the group mobilized again to rescue people.
To rescue as many people as possible, they needed a streamlined tool to gather information from those seeking help.
BlakSheep Creative created a process using WPForms, Zapier, and Slack that helped organize the information to make sure rescues were efficient.
Here’s how we did it:
Step 1: Create a Form on Their Website
The first step was to create a form using WPForms on Pinnacle Search & Rescue’s website which asked for information such as:
Want this handled for you? We build and market websites for Louisiana businesses, and we will tell you honestly if you do not need us.
- Is this a water rescue?
- Is this a wellness check?
- Is there life-threatening debris that needs to be removed?
- Are you filling this out on behalf of someone?
- Name of Primary Person Needing Help
- Primary Phone Number
- Secondary Phone Number
- How do you know this person?
- Where is help needed?
- Number of Adults
- Number of Children
- Number of Elderly
- Number of Pets
- Any additional notes?
Once Cajun Navy 2016 captured the information from people in need of help, we needed a way to populate a Google spreadsheet to use in their command post to be alerted to new requests for assistance and track the completed ones.
Step 2: Populate a Google Sheet with Information Using Zapier
We created a “Zap” using Zapier and connected it to the form in their WordPress website backend. This Zap automatically added information from the form into a Google sheet that they could access anytime.
What is Zapier?
Zapier is a tool that helps you automate repetitive tasks between two or more apps, no code necessary. When an event happens in one app, Zapier can tell another to perform (or do) any particular action with just the press of your button!
You select the Apps you want to be connected to your account, create a “Zap,” and choose what information you want to be exported from the form created in WordPress into the Google sheet.
Unfortunately, when new requests for help came in, unless they were looking directly at the spreadsheet, there was no way to tell when new requests came in or when they completed existing ones.
This process was not organized enough for a high-stress environment.
Step 3: Send Updates to Slack via Zapier
To get updates from Google Sheets into their Slack channels, we used Zapier again to send updates to their Slack channels to provide real-time information to their volunteer rescuers.
What is Slack?
Slack is a messaging app for businesses that connects people to the information they need. By bringing everyone together in one unified team, Slack transforms how organizations communicate and work with each other more efficiently than ever before!
This was the Slack app’s first integration (that we know of) into a disaster search and rescue organization.
Step 4: Let the Hurricane Ida Rescues Begin!
Once the team received their notifications in Slack, they could focus less on the information gathering and more on saving lives.
By utilizing this process, they were able to help rescue:
- 267 adults (90 were elderly)
- 105 children
- 89 pets
It was a massive undertaking that happened in real-time! We’re proud of what we achieved by using WPForms, Zapier, and Slack for Hurricane IDA!
Does your business or organization need an innovative way to increase efficiency and save time?
Do you want to automate tedious processes and focus on what’s most important?
Contact BlakSheep Creative at info@blaksheepcreative.com or by phone at (225) 505-3834 today!
We’d love to help your business thrive!
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About the author
Founder & Lead Developer · Denham Springs, LA
Clint has built and marketed websites for 26 years, since founding BlakSheep Creative in 2000. He is also a 29-year firefighter and a 23-year member of IAFF Local 557, which is where the bias toward plain answers over sales copy comes from.
- Veteran-owned
- Firefighter-owned
- IAFF Local 557
Common Questions About the Cajun Navy Rescue Workflow
Short answers to the questions that come up most on this topic.
How did Cajun Navy 2016 collect rescue requests during Hurricane Ida?
What does Zapier do in this workflow?
Why was a Google Sheet not enough on its own?
Can a small business use WPForms, Zapier, and Slack the same way?
What results did the WPForms, Zapier, and Slack process produce?
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