The Apple Watch is packed with a host of apps and features that have helped save a number of lives over the years since its launch. The smartwatch's life-saving capabilities are grabbing headlines again for rescuing two kayakers in Puerto Rico.
In October, the watch's Fall Detection feature saved the life of a hiker and his girlfriend who fell off a cliff by detecting their fall and immediately calling emergency services. More recently, the Apple wearable's EKG tech warned a Florida man of potential atrial fibrillation. The feature is also responsible for saving a UK man's life by detecting an excessively low heart rate.
Apple Watch – A lifesaving smartwatch
Now, the smartwatch is being credited for saving the life of two men who found themselves stranded at sea in Puerto Rico after they went out kayaking without wearing lifejackets and their kayaks capsized.
The two men, who were on vacation, decided to go kayaking off the Caribbean Island's Atlantic coast. However, due to rough conditions and high-surf advisories, their kayak overturned, leaving both men stranded in the ocean.
According to US Coast Guard officials, the men had to swim in rough conditions for several hours after their kayak sank to the bottom of the ocean.
Luckily, one of the men realized he was wearing an Apple Watch, which has an Emergency SOS feature that helps place a call to emergency services and shares your location with them. This enabled the Coast Guard and local law enforcement to zero in on their location using a helicopter.
Emergency SOS feature – How to call emergency services?
The Apple Watch Emergency SOS feature makes it easy for users to quickly get in touch with emergency services using the button located on the right side of the smartwatch. The latest Watch Series 5 takes things a step further by allowing you to contact the local authorities when you're visiting another country.
In order to use Emergency SOS on an Apple Watch that does not have a cellular link, you need your iPhone to be in close proximity. If your phone isn't nearby, you need to be connected to a known Wi-Fi network
Here's how to make a call
- Press and hold the side button on your watch until the Emergency SOS slider appears.
- Continue to hold down the side button. Wait for a countdown to begin and an alert to sound. You can also drag the Emergency SOS slider.
- When the countdown ends, your watch automatically calls emergency services.
