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iPhone and Apple Watch Emergency SOS feature save woman, child after collision

After a horrifying collision with a drunk driver at a stoplight, a woman saved her life by calling for help with her Apple Watch with its SOS feature.

Kacie Anderson was stopped at a red light in late 2017 when her car was hit from the rear by a drunk driver. The car was launched by the force of the crash, and the occupants were buffeted until the vehicle came to a stop.

"The moment he hit us everything inside the car went airborne. My face took a horrible blow to the steering wheel, headrest, back to the steering wheel, and then to the window. I blacked out for about a minute and could not see. My eyes were wide open but all I saw was black," Anderson told Shape on Friday. "My hands flew around to feel for my phone and then I realized I had my watch on and commanded it to call 911."

The child in the car had only minor bruising and scrapes, presumably protected by the car seat. After extraction by paramedics, Anderson was discovered to have a severe concussion, brain swelling, and bulging disks from the accident — with repercussions from the accident still being dealt with.

Apple's watchOS 3 brought with it the Emergency SOS feature. Anderson probably invoked it by holding the side button for six seconds, which then attempts to call emergency services either through the wireless connection on a Series 3 Apple Watch with LTE, or through a linked iPhone.