Here’s an amazing story of how a modern smartphone can save lives, especially one studded with features such as GPS location and waterproof build. We have covered stories of how the Apple Watch has come to the rescue of users, saving them from life-threatening situations. Samsung‘s 2017 flagship phone, the Galaxy S8, also did same for a couple of seafarers when their boat capsized under strong winds.
According to the report propagated by Samsung Newsroom, a Canadian citizen named Jim Emdee was able to call for help for himself and his island-hopping fellow tourists using his Galaxy S8. The story goes that Emdee was one of 16 divers who had set out to visit the Filipino province of Cebu in a boat, accompanied by 4 local guides. The crew encountered turbulent waters at sea and the vessel capsized off Bogo City. Thankfully, all persons on board were able to swim to shore safely (they’re almost all divers after all).
While at sure, they discovered that all their gadgets had been damaged by water except for Emdee’s Galaxy S8. As a reminder, the Galaxy S8 comes with an IP68 rating meaning it can withstand a dip in the freshwater of a depth of 1.5 meters (4.92 feet) for up to 30 minutes. The Canadian and his companions were able to use the phone to call for help. Not only that, rescuers were able to track the stranded crew using GPS co-ordinates beamed by the Galaxy S8. 
Following his harrowing experience, Emdee reached out to extend his thanks to the Samsung engineering team, saying, “I really hope my thanks can make it to the engineering team as honestly it really saved us all. Only my S8 was able to connect and it worked all the way until we made it to land. It stayed alive for much longer than I thought possible, and it really made the difference.”
In addition, James Jung, Head of Samsung Electronics Philippines said, “We are glad to hear that the passengers are all safe and that a Samsung phone was helpful in the rescue effort. We will continue to work towards producing devices that can come to users’ aid when they find themselves in dire situations.”
Samsung is thus using this medium to advise owners of its smartphones to keep the GPS locator turned on if they are travelling, especially if travelling alone or in remote areas.
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(source)
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