Mass. travelers stranded in Colorado snow use iPhone feature to get help, despite no cell service
Massachusetts travelers who got stranded in the snow in Colorado on Christmas Day utilized an emergency feature on an iPhone to call for help, despite having no cellular service.
The Bay Staters were driving through Gilpin County when their Toyota Tacoma got stuck on a snowy path in Miners Gulch around 6:30 p.m., the Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office told KMGH-TV.
Stranded and unable to make calls, the travelers requested help via the iPhone’s SOS Emergency Call satellite feature, Kimi McBryde of Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery told the news outlet.
“So pro of the iPhone: we found out they needed help. Con, you don’t necessarily get all the information,” McBryde told the local television station. “So, we weren’t sure how many people were out there. We weren’t sure if they had animals with them, if they had enough food, water, layers, where they were from. We didn’t really know anything.”
McBryde said it took the rescue team about three hours to track down the out-of-towners, who had attempted to dig themselves out of the snow but were struggling with the Centennial State’s higher altitude.
“One of the parties had started showing symptoms of altitude sickness, so we were pretty concerned about that,” McBryde told the news outlet.
All of the Massachusetts visitors were said to be doing OK after rescue crews tended to them.
How does Emergency SOS via satellite work?
According to Apple:
Emergency SOS via satellite can help you connect with emergency services under exceptional circumstances when no other means of reaching emergency services are available. If you call or text emergency services and can’t connect because you’re somewhere with no cellular and Wi-Fi coverage, your iPhone tries to connect you via satellite.
To connect to a satellite, you need to be outside with a clear view of the sky and horizon. When you use a satellite connection, the experience is different than sending or receiving a message via cellular.
Emergency SOS via satellite is free for two years after the activation of an iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 15, or iPhone 15 Pro.
If your iPhone or Apple Watch detects a severe car crash or a hard fall and you’re unresponsive, an automatic Crash Detection or Fall Detection notification to emergency services may be communicated by your iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 15, or iPhone 15 Pro using Emergency SOS via satellite if you’re outside of cellular and Wi-Fi coverage.
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