The SOS call feature saved a young woman who was suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Wearable technology like the Apple Watch is being increasingly credited with saving lives in a spectrum of different ways, and the smartwatch was recently used to rescue a student in Delaware who was suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning.
The student, Natalie Nasatka, used the SOS button on her smartwatch as she started losing consciousness.
The student noticed that she was feeling exceptionally exhausted and was starting to lose consciousness. That said, she still had the wherewithal to hit the SOS button on her Apple Watch. As it turned out, she had been inhaling deadly carbon monoxide fumes that were being emitted by a faulty heater in her room.
The gas is both odorless and tasteless. Without a special carbon monoxide detector, the gas’ presence can be difficult to identify. That said, it can be rapidly deadly. Unfortunately, Nasatka did not have a carbon monoxide detector installed in her home at the time that the leak happened from her heater.
The Apple Watch SOS message was received by emergency responders and was acted upon.
Firefighters soon arrived at Nasatka’s residence, pulling her from where she was unconscious in bed and bringing her to safety. Her quick thinking and the use of the smartwatch feature were both central in her rescue.
The use of this type of feature on wearable technology has been building a lengthening list of people whose lives have been saved. Many smartwatches and trackers have a spectrum of different health and fitness monitoring features that include options such as heart rate and even blood oxygen levels. The Apple Watch’s SOS call feature has become a helpful way to make sure people can access emergency services even if they can’t talk or don’t happen to have their phone in their hand.
The feature is activated by holding the smartwatch’s side button and then clicking SOS on the screen. Many people who have used the feature are encouraging other device users to get to know what it is and how they can use it in case they should face an emergency too.
