An iPhone notification may have saved a life. A motorist caused an accident in the middle of the night and lost consciousness. Due to the time of day, there were hardly any other drivers on the road who could help. Nevertheless, the ambulance was alerted. The man’s phone itself called the emergency services. How does that work?
The telephone provided the exact location of the collision in Rotterdam, enabling the emergency services to arrive quickly. The victim was freed from his vehicle and taken to hospital. It is unclear how he is doing now.
That the emergency services could reach him so quickly was because of his phone. The latest Apple models detect an accident themselves. It concerns the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models with the latest version of the iOS software. Several Apple watches also have this function. The Accident Detection, as Apple calls it, is set by default.
Emergency call
When the device ‘senses’ that a collision has occurred, it will make an alarm sound and display a warning on the screen. People who are able to respond can then call emergency services themselves or cancel the call.
If no action is taken, the phone or watch will call the emergency responders after 20 seconds and provide the location of the emergency. The device also alerts so-called emergency contacts and says that there has been a serious accident.
In addition, medical data – if entered – are displayed, so that emergency services can see what kind of person they are dealing with.
Press three times
Apple is not the only one with such a feature. For example, people with a Samsung device can send an emergency call by quickly pressing the power button three times. Older Apple devices also have a similar function.
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