Current:Home > NewsWhy an iPhone alert is credited with saving a man who drove off a 400-foot cliff-InfoLens
Why an iPhone alert is credited with saving a man who drove off a 400-foot cliff
View Date:2025-01-09 07:49:29
First responders in Los Angeles County say they were able to rescue a man who drove off a 400-foot cliff on Friday after receiving an alert triggered by his phone.
The driver, who rescuers found at the bottom of a ravine, was "bleeding profusely" but survived the incident, according to Mike Leum, a search and rescue group leader for the LA County Sheriff's Department.
"The majority of calls we get there over the sides usually are fatal," Leum told ABC News about the crash site, which was off a windy road along Mount Wilson.
Volunteer search and rescue responders with the LA County Sheriff's Department first received a report about the crash around 11 p.m. on Friday.
Leum said dispatchers learned about the incident due to the driver's iPhone 14 crash detection program. Recent iPhones and Apple Watches have a program that automatically alerts authorities if the phone's sensors suggest the device's owner might be in a crash or hard fall.
"We're talking about hundreds of miles of mountain roads where these people could have gone over the side," Leum said about the incident on Friday and other similar incidents involving the crash detection program. "So I'm not convinced that they would have ever been found."
MORE: Find My iPhone leads to car crash rescue in California
Locating the car's skid marks and a damaged guardrail, rescuers were eventually able to make audio contact with the driver, according to Leum. Once they located him at the bottom of the 400-foot cliff, rescuers used an airlift to send the driver to a local trauma center.
The driver's car, found pancaked at the bottom of the ravine, was unrecognizable, according to Leum. Apart from the head laceration, the driver had no other major injuries such as broken bones, he said.
The California Highway Patrol could not be immediately reached about the cause of the crash.
"This guy on Friday would have bled out," Leum said about the severity of his injuries.
Apple released its crash detection feature in September 2022, though its rollout was followed by some reports about false positive alerts issued by the device. While users can cancel the alert within 20 seconds of the perceived crash, some alerts were reported to have accidentally contacted authorities while users were riding roller coasters or skiing.
An Apple representative told ABC News that the company is aware of the reported issues and have rolled out multiple software updates to reduce the number of false positives. Leum added that his department has worked with the company to prevent such instances.
MORE: Apple CEO Tim Cook says Vision Pro is 'tomorrow's engineering, today': Exclusive
Leum cited at least four victims he believes rescuers would not have been able to reach in time but for the crash detection program.
"Nobody saw the crashes, so who knows how long it would have taken for someone to file a missing person report and for some agency to backtrack and try and locate these people," he said.
veryGood! (6)
Related
- Repair Hair Damage In Just 90 Seconds With This Hack from WNBA Star Kamilla Cardoso
- Crews cutting into first pieces of collapsed Baltimore bridge | The Excerpt
- Tennessee fires women's basketball coach Kellie Harper week after NCAA Tournament ouster
- Stock market today: Asia markets are mixed after Wall Street’s strong manufacturing data
- Democratic state leaders prepare for a tougher time countering Trump in his second term
- Tori Spelling tells Dean McDermott she filed for divorce during podcast: 'Hate to do this to you'
- One dead, 5 wounded in shooting at Easter brunch in Nashville restaurant
- Chance Perdomo, Gen V and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina actor, dies in motorcycle accident at 27
- Mean Girls’ Lacey Chabert Details “Full Circle” Reunion With Lindsay Lohan and Amanda Seyfried
- Judge expands Trump’s gag order after ex-president’s social media posts about judge’s daughter
Ranking
- New wildfires burn in US Northeast while bigger blazes rage out West
- Arizona names Pluto as its official state planet — except it's technically not a planet
- Cicadas are nature’s weirdos. They pee stronger than us and an STD can turn them into zombies
- Cicadas are nature’s weirdos. They pee stronger than us and an STD can turn them into zombies
- 'Red One' review: Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans embark on a joyless search for Santa
- Judges, witnesses, prosecutors increasingly warn of threats to democracy in 2024 elections as Jan. 6 prosecutions continue
- What's open and closed for Easter? See which stores and restaurants are operating today.
- United asks pilots to take unpaid leave amid Boeing aircraft shipment delays
Recommendation
-
Beyoncé course coming to Yale University to examine her legacy
-
NIT schedule today: Everything to know about men's semifinal games on April 2
-
At least 7 minors, aged 12 to 17, injured after downtown Indianapolis shooting
-
One dead, 5 wounded in shooting at Easter brunch in Nashville restaurant
-
'Heretic' spoilers! Hugh Grant spills on his horror villain's fears and fate
-
Actor Jason Sudeikis watches Caitlin Clark, Iowa defeat LSU to reach Final Four
-
Ramy Youssef wants God to free Palestine and 'all the hostages' in 'SNL' monologue
-
Mass shooting outside Indianapolis mall leaves 7 injured, all children and teens, police say