A woman in the US has claimed that an Apple Watch saved her and her 9-month-old son because of its SOS feature. 24-year-old Kacie Anderson and her child were reportedly hit by a drunk driver at an intersection in 2017. After being hit, the woman from Hannover, Pennsylvania, managed to save both their lives by calling emergency services for help using her Apple Watch and its SOS feature.
As per a report in Shape, Anderson reportedly shared the incident in a letter to Apple recently. She has revealed that she was stopped at a red light with her 9-month-old child when her car was struck from behind. Anderson could not reach her smartphone to call 911 emergency services, yet she was able to use her Apple Watch. “The moment he hit us everything inside the car went airborne. My face took a horrible blow to the steering wheel, headrest, back to the steering wheel, and then to the window. I blacked out for about a minute and could not see. My eyes were wide open but all I saw was black. My hands flew around to feel for my phone and then I realized I had my watch on and commanded it to call 911,” She told Shape.
An ambulance rushed both mother and son soon after the call was placed. Anderson’s son reportedly suffered minor injuries, but her own condition was more serious.
Apple Watch’s SOS feature enables users to call emergency numbers directly from the device. A user, either needs to have an iPhone nearby or an Apple Watch Series 3 to make the calls. Apple, in watchOS 3, had unveiled its Emergency SOS feature. Recalling the incident, Anderson further told Shape that she had been wearing the Apple Watch for two years, but she never had to use the SOS feature. Yet, she credited it for “saving” her and her son. “I feel so blessed that I had my Apple Watch on,” she said.
To note, the emergency feature in Apple Watch works by pressing and holding the side button until the Emergency SOS slider appears. After this, the user would see a countdown as well as an alert sound. Once the countdown ends, the Apple Watch automatically calls emergency services.
