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Rescuers near ski resorts are seeing an influx of Crash Detection alerts iPhone and Apple Watches – and they want the skiers to leave them on.
In October, we learned that roller coasters were capable of this settlement the new iPhones and Apple Watch Crash detection function. Now it seems skiing can do just that.
According to Summit County Dispatch Center supervisor Suzie Butterfield, dispatchers get between three and five Apple crash alerts a day.
Usually the skier does not even know that the alarm has gone off.
“They won’t respond to you when you first start talking because I don’t even think they knew they were doing it, but when they get a call back…they usually say, ‘Oh sorry, I was skiing . Everything is fine” said Butterfield KSL, spotted by MacRumors.
Despite the pocket dials, Butterfield sees the technology as an important tool, not an annoyance.
“Someone could ski and hit a tree and be knocked unconscious and not be visible to other skiers,” she said.
Crash detection is on by default, and Summit County says it should stay that way.
“We don’t want you to disable the feature,” Butterfield said. “We’d rather you were safe. We don’t mind taking that call, because if something really happens, we want to be able to reach you.’
Skiers aren’t the only ones who activate Crash Detection, either. In October, emergency centers near theme parks had reported an influx of calls as Apple devices misinterpreted ride motions and noise as collisions.