Apple offers several health and safety features across devices and the iPhone Emergency SOS is one of those live-saving features at times of distress. Kelli Worst, a survivor of sexual assault spoke up about her experience and how iPhone Emergency SOS helped her contact 911.
[Warning: This story includes sensitive content related to sexual assault.]
The iPhone Emergency SOS allows users to quickly and easily contact 911 and their emergency contacts either manually or automatically. During a distressful incident, use only has to press and hold the side button and one of the volume buttons, simultaneously and an Emergency SOS slider appears on the screen. If possible users can swipe the slider to contact emergency services and contact or wait for the device to automatically call them at the end of the countdown.
iPhone Emergency SOS made a call to 911 which led police officers to the victim and scene of the crime at Oceanfront
Worst told the Wavy that she was about to sit her cab after enjoying a night out with her friends at the Oceanfront, Virginia Beach in Virginia. The 22-year-old perpetrator, Najee Bullock lured her toward the beach on the false pretext of needing help to locate his phone.
While Worst was searching, Bullock proceeded to execute his sinister plan to rape her. As Worst struggled for life during the assault, she, fortunately, had her iPhone in her hand and smartly used it to call 911 via iPhone Emergency SOS.
After the call connected to 911, Worst shouted details like her location, and what was happening before the attacker took her phone.
She tried and failed to escape twice. The louder she screamed, the harder Bullock pinned her down. That’s when she made the decision to use a feature on her iPhone to get help.
“I still had my phone in my right hand, so I activated the SOS feature by holding the side button and the power button and then swiping across, so from that point on 911 was able to hear everything that was going on,” Worst said.
A 911 dispatcher was on the line, listening to Worst as she pleaded with Bullock not to hurt her. Worst tried to give as many clues as possible to the dispatcher, telling Bullock she didn’t want to move closer to the ocean so officers would know she was on the beach. Later, police would tell Worst that her clues led them to the sand instead of a nearby hotel that they were originally going to check.
The story continues with Worst elaborating on her long and difficult struggle to overcome that trauma she had suffered. Although the facts of the account are moving and triggering for some, it is an inspirational and motivational story for victims of such assaults to know that such heinous crimes are not their fault and they are not to blame themselves. The Emergency SOS feature is available on iPhone and Apple Watch.
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