Two new features on Apple’s iPhone 14 have saved two victims of a serious accident that occurred on Wednesday. The features, Emergency SOS via Satellite and Crash Detection, alerted authorities and led rescuers to a remote location in the Angeles Forest Highway in the Angeles National Forest in California
A vehicle careened over the side of a mountain to fall approximately 300 feet into a remote canyon. An iPhone 14 handset in the car detected the crash, and as there was no cellular signal, information was provided to rescuers using Emergency SOS via Satellite.
The victims sent an Emergency SOS via Satellite text message to an Apple relay center, which then contacted the LA County Sheriff’s department for help. The Montrose Research and Rescue Team located the crash site and lifted the victims out with a helicopter. The duo was taken to a local hospital and treated for mild to moderate injuries. with the whole rescue caught on video.
Deputies, Fire Notified of Vehicle Over the Side Via iPhone Emergency Satellite Service
This afternoon at approximately 1:55 PM, @CVLASD received a call from the Apple emergency satellite service. The informant and another victim had been involved in a single vehicle accident pic.twitter.com/tFWGMU5h3V
— Montrose Search & Rescue Team (Ca.) (@MontroseSAR) December 14, 2022
The Montrose Search and Rescue Team confirmed that the Emergency Satellite service from Apple was used to get help. The Search and Rescue Team said that Apple’s call center was able to provide “an accurate latitude and longitude for the victims.”
This isn’t the first time the iPhone 14’s Emergency Satellite via SOS has saved a life, as on December 1, 2022, at around 2:00 am, the Alaska State Troopers were notified that an adult male traveling via snowmachine from Noorvik to Kotzebue had activated an Apple iPhone Emergency SOS via satellite on his iPhone after becoming stranded.
Crash Detection and Emergency Satellite via SOS are available on all iPhone 14 users. As of right now, Emergency SOS via Satellite is available in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, and the UK. The feature is free to use for two years.
(Via MacRumors)
