She later made an emergency call with her Apple Watch, with the entire incident summarized through a Facebook post below. The Apple Watch includes an SOS feature that lets wearers call emergency services by holding the side of the smartwatch’s button for a few seconds. It should be noted that for the emergency call or SOS feature to function, the Apple Watch needs cellular connectivity support, along with an active data plan. Upon their arrival, Officers Reams and Perez located the swimmer who was stuck in the river with her foot caught in the rocks on the bottom. The swimmer was nearing exhaustion from her continued exposure to the swift, cold water. Officers were joined by Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue personnel. The swimmer advised that she had been caught in the river for over 30 minutes, and that she had made the emergency call from her Apple watch. The swimmer was showing signs of hypothermia and she was in obvious distress. Fire personnel attempted to provide a ladder to the swimmer, and to pry apart the rocks in which her foot was stuck from the shore. These rescue attempts were unsuccessful and the swimmer’s condition continued to deteriorate. Officer Reams assessed the scene and determined that the rescue of the swimmer needed to be immediate, and that he would be able to aid in the rescue only by entering the water to feel how the entrapment was occurring, since the water was too murky and fast to allow any visible inspection from above. Officer Reams left his ballistic vest and duty belt on the shore and cautiously entered the water downstream of the swimmer. Officer Reams reached under the water and was just able to reach the swimmer’s foot. Only Officer Reams’ head was not submerged. Officer Reams was able to free the swimmer’s stuck foot and bring her to shore and the care of the fire fighters. Please use extreme caution when swimming and never swim alone. Local waterways are cold and the rivers continue to fun fast.” These devices are also splash resistant, meaning that Apple has rated them for use in a pool, not a river, so for the Apple Watch to continue functioning while the woman struggled in the water was genuinely remarkable. You can also check out below the various other ways in which an Apple Watch has saved or was used to save lives.
Apple Watch Alerted Authorities in Freezing Temperature After Elderly Owner Fell Outside His Property Apple Watch Owner Credits the Wearable for Saving His Life After He Suffered a Serious Fall Apple Watch Saves Life of a Woman by Detecting the ‘Widow Maker’ Heart Attack, Which Was Not Felt by the Wearer
News Source: City of The Dalles Police Department
