Swimmer saved by SOS feature on Apple Watch in Oregon

Technology saves lives! Yes, a woman swimmer used her Apple Watch to alert first responders when she got trapped in the Columbia River last week. While swimming at 56 degrees Fahrenheit (ca. 13 degrees Celsius), the swimmer got her legs stuck under a rock and was exhausted. She used the SOS feature on her watch, which allowed users to contact emergency services in case of an accident or any incident.

According to Dallas Police Department, the woman was trapped in water for almost 30 minutes before calling emergency services using her Apple Watch.

The rescue mission kicked off immediately when the woman contacted the emergency services.

The first attempt to rescue the woman by providing a ladder was unsuccessful as her foot got trapped between rocks. Prying the rock aside was also not successful as expected.

Officer Reams, a first responder, understood that the only way to rescue the woman was to enter the water and understand how she was trapped between rocks.  It was not practical to see anything from above the water, as the water flow was fast and murky.

According to the police report, officer reams left his ballistic vest and duty belt on the shore and entered the water downstream of the swimmer. Other than his head, officer reams were submerged under the water. Soon after, he was able to free the swimmer’s leg from the rocks and being her to the shore.

From there, firefighters and health services took care of her.

Other incidents of Apple Watch saving lives

This is not the first time the Apple Watch saved the lives of people. Several times’ Apple Watch has saved people from getting a heart attack by reminding people of their heartbeats per minute.

In an incident reported from Australia, a 24-year-old man named Adam Love was alerted by his Apple Watch when his heartbeat started to increase abnormally. This was during the night when Adam was sleeping. While normal heart beat was 60 bpm, Adam’s bpm was 140. When checked up at a hospital, doctors informed him he had a hole in his heart. No one knew about this hole, and the Apple Watch helped Adam to save his life.

How to activate SOS on Apple Watch –

1. Press and Hold your watches side button
2. Once the Emergency SOS slide appears, drag it to start the call
3. If the slide doesn’t work, continue holding the side button until the call automatically starts.

Keep in mind that to use the SOS feature in Apple Watches, you should have a cellular connection and network in your watch.