Apple Watch called 911 to save an unresponsive man’s life

Fall Detection, a feature introduced on Apple Watch Series 4, can recognize if a user takes a hard fall. It can alert local emergency services if the user is still unresponsive after 60 seconds. This feature is what helped saved an unresponsive man in Chandler, Arizona.

Ktar News, a local media outlet, reported:

“On April 23, the Chandler Police Department’s Communications Center received a 911 call from a computer-enhanced voice indicating an Apple Watch user had fallen and was not responding.

The voice provided near-exact latitude and longitude coordinates of the man’s location to first responders.

Patrol officers and the Chandler Fire Department were dispatched to the location. They found the man wearing the Apple Watch had fainted and collapsed.”

Fall Detection is available for Apple Watch Series 4 and later. It detects when a user has taken a hard fall, and triggers a series of reactions.

• The Watch begins a 30-second countdown while sounding an alert and tapping you on the wrist.
• The alert gets louder so that the user or someone near them can hear it.
• Lastly, the watch detects immobility after the countdown and automatically calls emergency services, 911. During the call, an automated recording is played which communicates the person’s longitude and latitude coordinates for the paramedics to locate and reach the distressed individual, as soon as possible.

This feature is automatically turned on for users at the age of 65 or older. Users under the age of 65 have to set up this feature manually.

How to enable Fall Detection on Apple Watch

To enable Fall Detection in Apple Watch, follow these steps:

1. Open the Watch app on your iPhone and go to My Watch tab.
2. Tap on Emergency SOS.
3. Toggle Fall Detection on.

Fall Detection feature has saved countless lives since its release. One notable incident was when an 87-year-old woman was involved in a car crash, and her Apple Watch automatically called local emergency services and alerted her emergency contact list. Luckily she came out of the incident with only a few broken bones and credited the Apple Watch for saving her life.