Emergency SOS Archives - Gizmochina

Apple’s Satellite SOS Feature Helps Prevent a Major Forest Fire on an Island in Canada

Anubhav — Wed, 02 Aug 2023 02:14:16 +0000

Apple‘s Emergency SOS feature was talked about quite a lot when it first came out. People wondered if there would be any practical applications for such a niche feature. Well, their concerns will definitely be hushed up once they find out that a group of Canadian residents in Missanabie, Ontario, recently utilized the iPhone 14’s SOS via satellite feature to call for emergency services. This is how they fought a raging forest fire on Dog Lake Island without any available cellular connection.

The fire was also taken care of by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry who arrived later

The new iPhone feature, incorporated in both the 14 and 14 Pro models, enables users to reach out to emergency services during connectivity blackouts. It is primarily used in emergency situations such as when an adventurer gets lost or injured. However, this event marked another practical application for the feature, demonstrating its utility in firefighting efforts.

The duo, Warren Thibodeau and Orel Crack, alongside local firefighter Craig Spooner, embarked on a daring expedition to combat the island fire. They navigated their way to the blazing island, tirelessly spraying water until the fire was quenched. Their valiant efforts were supported by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) who arrived promptly after being contacted through the satellite feature.

“The new GlobalStar emergency feature of the iPhone 14 facilitated our communication with the MNRF while approaching the burning island,” Eric Belanger, who photographed and shared the event, stated. The following day, a camper from Dog Lake Cottages and Campground, Marc G., confirmed that the MNRF were tidying up the aftermath.

The SOS via satellite feature becomes available when cellular signal is non-existent. The user interface prompts the user to point their iPhone toward a nearby satellite for a signal. This feature gathers data about the reported incident and shares the user’s location with emergency services. Despite the slow data transfer speeds and potential poor connection quality, it offers a lifeline in emergency situations, underlining the revolutionary impact of technology on public safety and disaster management.

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Apple’s Emergency SOS Via Satellite Feature Saves Two Lives in Canada!

Oğuz Çakır — Sun, 29 Jan 2023 11:03:35 +0000

Apple’s Emergency SOS via satellite feature has been available for some time. This feature, which has resulted in numerous survival stories, is almost a game changer. A recent case confirms this, as two women who went missing in Canada were found with the help of the Emergency SOS via satellite feature. Here are the details…

iPhone 14’s Emergency SOS via satellite feature saved two women in Canada

Recently, it was reported that two women were traveling home after visiting Alberta when they became lost near McBride, a small village in British Columbia, Canada. Unfortunately, while trying to find their way back, they had a car accident and became stranded in an area with no cell phone reception.

They made it around 20 kilometers down the road before hitting a “wall of snow,” indicating where the plow had stopped, and getting stuck. The two women were in a rather desperate situation. Fortunately one of the women had an iPhone 14 and thought to use the new Emergency SOS via satellite feature. Using the iPhone 14, they were able to send a message and their location to an Apple call center.

From there, the Apple call center contacted the “Northern911” call center in Canada, which then activated a call to emergency service. Rescue teams pulled the vehicle out of the snow and helped it get turned around and headed back toward the highway. Dwight Yochim, a senior manager with British Columbia Search and Rescue, said he believes this is the “first use” of the new feature in British Columbia.

“There’s no cell service there but one of them happened to have the new Apple phone that has the SOS in it and activated the SOS and to my knowledge, that’s the first use of the SOS in British Columbia. If they didn’t have this, what would have happened is eventually the family or their work would have said “hey, they didn’t show up” and so the search area would have been from wherever they were last seen to where they’re supposed to be, and that could have been several hundred kilometres.”

For context, Yochim estimates that his team does around 1,700 to 1,800 searches a year. Emergency SOS via satellite on the iPhone 14 can significantly cut down on the number.

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Siri Causes Unnecessary Police Raid at Gym, 15 Armed Officers Respond

Oğuz Çakır — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 11:17:26 +0000

A pair of unlikely circumstances led to false alarms at a gym in Sydney, Australia, on Tuesday. A personal trainer at PTJ Gladesville was teaching a client when his Apple Watch accidentally activated Siri and called emergency services and caused 15 armed police officers to show up. Here are the details…

Siri pulled a false alarm at the gym and caused 15 armed police officers to show

According to a report from news.com.au, a personal trainer at PTJ Gladesville was teaching a client when his Apple Watch accidentally activated Siri and called emergency services. When the emergency services received the call, they believed there was an emergency involving gun shots, possibly a suicide, had occurred at the gym. As a result, around 15 armed police officers arrived at the gym, leaving the trainer and his client in shock. Since the false alarm was an honest mistake, it wasn’t immediately clear what actually happened.

Source: news.com.au

The trainer describes what happened next: “The next minute about 15 officers including undercovers showed up, with several ambulances parked out the front, and that’s when I started bricking myself. “All of them came in and I was like, ‘What is going on?’ One of them asked who Jamie Avery-or something was and I said, ‘I am Jamie Alleyne.’ “He told me I was the one who made the call which was impossible because I didn’t even have my phone on me.”

Upon realizing the mistake, the trainer explained to the police that he had not made the call and that it was a false alarm caused by his Apple Watch. Fortunately, no one was harmed during the incident. This incident serves as a reminder to be cautious of the words we say when Siri or any other voice assistive device is turned on.

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Qualcomm Snapdragon Satellite Brings Emergency Messaging Service To Android Smartphones

Jeet — Fri, 06 Jan 2023 03:24:35 +0000

Qualcomm has partnered with Iridium for a new service announced at CES 2023, dubbed Qualcomm Snapdragon Satellite, which will add new functionality to Android smartphones.

As the name itself indicates, it brings support for satellite communication during emergencies, a feature similar to what Apple recently introduced as Emergency SOS via Satellite.

The Snapdragon Satellite feature will be available in smartphones that pack Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor and the Snapdragon X70 modem system, along with some additional radios.

The company says that smartphones with support for this new feature should be launched in select regions starting in the second half of this year. It added that there are several manufacturers working on adding this feature to their devices.

It’s likely that Snapdragon Satellite will be limited to premium flagship smartphones as the company is only supporting its flagship processor and modem for now. Companies that want to add it to their phones will work directly with Qualcomm without having to build new relationships with Iridium.

Initially, the feature will be limited to use in emergency situations, allowing users to contact someone for help even in a remote area without cell service. When the user sends an SOS, “response coordinators immediately see the customer’s Latitude/Longitude in their proprietary mapping and response coordination software to determine the appropriate agency to coordinate the rescue.”

Qualcomm says that it will eventually support “premium messaging,” which will likely cost extra and will have to be implemented by OEMs, cell carriers, or other over-the-top service providers.

When it’s available, users will be able to use the service with the existing phone numbers. The company says that the emergency service will be free or very cheap, but it hasn’t provided any details about the pricing.

Apple iPhone 14’s emergency feature helps rescue couple from car accident

Sean — Thu, 15 Dec 2022 11:50:23 +0000

It appears that Apple has saved more human lives yet again. This time around, the company’s iPhone 14 helped in getting a couple rescued thanks to its dedicated set of emergency features that rushed the rescue efforts.

The news arrives from a tweet from the Montrose Research and Rescue Team. As per official notes, the incident took place on the Angeles Forest Highway in the Angeles National Forest in California, US. The couple faced a single vehicle accident that had their car fall 300 feet down the side of a mountain. This had them be stranded in a damaged car in a remote side of the canyon. This is where the iPhone 14 came into play.

For those unaware, the Cupertino based giant’s offers Crash Detection feature on the iPhone 14 series that can determine whether you’ve faced an vehicular accident. Furthermore, this information is then shared to the relevant authorities to make rescue efforts quick and accurate. Notably, this feature was also supplemented by another emergency feature that Apple had marketed during its iPhone 14 launch event, which is the Satellite SOS feature.

After the accident, the iPhone didn’t have even single cell of service, so the emergency SOS via Satellite service helped contact the rescuers. The satellite connectivity helped in sending a text message to one of Apple’s relay centers that then placed a call to the L.A County Sheriff’s department. The tweet also showcased a video of the rescue being conducted, so it appears that the emergency feature is already being quite effective in real life.

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iPhone 14’s Emergency SOS Feature Now Live For Some Selected European Countries

Chandan — Tue, 13 Dec 2022 15:23:46 +0000

Emergency SOS through Satellite Mode is a brand-new function available on the recently released Apple iPhone 14 range. The SOS mode is a standard feature on almost all smartphones on the market, but the one found in the new iPhone 14 series is more advanced. The new iPhones’ satellite-based SOS capability had previously gone live in the US and Canada. The feature is currently accessible in a few chosen countries in Europe, the brand has now been publicly announced.

When cellular or Wi-Fi access is unavailable, the function enables iPhone owners to send messages—rather than traditional phone calls—to emergency services in order to assist them. The iPhone 14 will urge you to “Report Emergency” and will present you with a questionnaire to gather information about your condition after you attempt to call emergency services the conventional method but are unsuccessful. Your location, altitude, iPhone battery life, and your Medical ID will be submitted together with your responses to the questionnaire (if available). Notifying your emergency contacts is another possibility.

The ground stations and satellite network of Globalstar received significant enhancements thanks to the Cupertino company. As a result, the new iPhone 14 Emergency SOS service will be supported by nearly 300 Globalstar employees. According to Apple, Emergency SOS uses a band designated for mobile satellite services. The total amount Apple spent on the Emergency SOS programme was $450 million. The majority of such money was used to build the feature’s infrastructure in association with satellite service provider Globalstar.

Next year, more countries will receive Emergency SOS through satellite, according to Apple. With the purchase of a compatible iPhone 14 (including the 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, and 14 Pro Max), two years of the service are free. It is not yet known how much the service will cost once those two years have passed. There is a demo mode you may utilise to become accustomed to the feature if you want to test it out but aren’t currently in an emergency.

Apple Watch saves man’s life after he was stranded out in the sea

Sean — Thu, 30 Jun 2022 11:29:34 +0000

Another life was just recently saved thanks to the Apple Watch. This time around a man was swept off into the sea, but thankfully the smartwatch from the company managed to come in handy with its emergency SOS feature.

Just last week, we had reported on the wearable product from the Cupertino based giant helped in saving a stranded woman’s life after she was trapped in an icy river. Now, the Apple Watch has managed to save a man’s life thanks to its emergency SOS feature. The incident took place on the north coast of Sydney Australia. A kayaker drifted 4 kilometers off the coast and was unable to paddle back to shore due to the strong winds.

But fortunately, he was wearing an Apple Watch, which allowed him to signal for help by activating the emergency SOS function. For those unaware, this feature lets users contact emergency services and also have their locations shared to the relevant authorities. According to DailyMail, the rescue operations was difficult but successful. One of the rescuers stated that the man “falling out of his kayak and had taken on quite a bit of water. He was lucky he had (a) connection on his device to make that desperate call for help.”

After the kayaker was secured, he was placed on the helicopter and showed signs of fatigue and hypothermia. With this, Apple can add another name to the list of the various people its product has saved across the globe.

Apple Watch Emergency SOS feature saves woman trapped in icy river

Sean — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 10:37:43 +0000

Another day another live saved by an electronic gadget. This time, the Apple Watch came to the rescue as it helped notify emergency services after the wearer used the SOS feature to call for help after being trapped in an icy river.

According to an AppleInsider report, the incident took place on June 15 in the Columbia River near The Dalles, Oregon. A woman had went for a swim in the ice cold waters of the river. However, her foot got caught under the rocks at the bottom of the river. This put her in quite a dangerous situation considering she had no means of freeing herself and was stuck in the ice cold waters.

This is when she used the SOS function on her Apple Watch to call emergency services. The City of The Dalles Police Department responded to the crisis and began the rescue operation. As per the police report, the swimmer was found in a state of exhaustion and showing signs of hypothermia. During the time of the incident there were rains in the Columbia River with the water temperature being around 13 degree Celsius.

This isn’t the first time the Apple Watch has helped save a life as a man had also used the SOS feature to call for help after being trapper under the ice of a frozen river. For those unaware, you can use the SOS feature by pressing and holding the side button below the Digital Crown till the Emergency SOS slider appears. Keep in mind, that you will need to have an iPhone nearby if you do not own the Cellular enabled Apple Watch version.

Apple Watch to soon support Satellite Connectivity for SOS & Emergency Contacts

Sean — Wed, 13 Apr 2022 06:09:30 +0000

Apple is planning on rolling out new features for its smartwatch. The company will be bringing satellite connectivity features for its Apple Watch along with support for emergency texting and SOS response as well.

According to a Bloomberg report, the Cupertino based giant’s smart wearable will soon be able to offer these crucial emergency features directly from the wearer’s wrist. The satellite connectivity was first rumored to arrive in the iPhone 13 series, although, the brand skipped it on the lineup. Now, it is rumored to launch with the iPhone 14 series, which means that it will be capable of sending short messages over satellite networks without a carrier network.

To put things simply, the iPhone maker is bringing these features to help offer users connectivity options in cases of emergencies. This plan will have Apple include two parts, with the first being “Emergency Message via Contacts.” The feature would allow users to send short text messages in areas that do not have cellular signals. Notably, this new system would appear with gray bubbles inside of the Messages app.

Furthermore, the second part of the system will let users report a crisis. This includes a car, boat, or plane crash to the authorities. This feature would be capable of taking more specific information such as a person falling overboard or a ship sinking. It will even ask users if search and rescue services are required. Keep in mind that this feature is still not confirmed by Apple yet, so take it with a pinch of salt for now and stick around for more updates.

Google Pixel’s Personal Safety app gets automatic video recording support during emergency

Jeet — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 07:00:44 +0000

Google Pixel series Android smartphones come with an exclusive feature in the form of a Personal Safety app. Over the years, the company has added several useful functionalities to the app, including safety check-in and automatic emergency number dialing when it detects you’ve been in a car accident.

Now, the company has added yet another feature to the Personal Safety application that can automatically record videos when you activate the built-in Emergency SOS.

When the power button is pressed five times, the device will call the emergency services, alert your emergency contacts that something is happening to you, and now, it will also automatically record a video of what’s going on.

The application will be able to record up to 45 minutes of continuous footage, with the average video size being around 10 MB per minute. However, you can stop the recording whenever you want to.

The recorded video will be automatically backed up to the cloud if there’s an active internet connection. It is backed up to your Google account as well as the Personal Safety app itself and can also be shared with your emergency contacts.

To start using this new feature on your Pixel series smartphone, go to the Google Play Store and get the latest version of the Personal Safety app. If you haven’t set up Emergency SOS on your device, you will need to do that by following the on-screen instructions. Do note that the app is currently limited to the Pixel lineup only and non-Google phones have no access to it.