Cyclist’s Apple Watch with a ‘fall detection feature’ may have saved his life by calling 911 and alerting his son after he crashed his bike and was knocked unconscious
- The fall-detection feature on Spokane, Washington resident Bob Burdett’s Apple Watch activated after he laid motionless for 60 seconds on September 15
- The digital timepiece is programmed to send out an alert to emergency services
- It also texted Burdett’s son, Gabe, who arrived at place where he and his dad were set to meet after emergency responders were already on scene
- Now Gabe says he plans to buy his own Apple Watch
Cycling enthusiast Bob Burdett, 62, of Spokane, Washington is crediting his helmet and his Apple Watch with saving him from serious harm after falling from his mountain bike and getting knocked unconscious during a recent excursion in a local park
A 62-year-old Washington cyclist is crediting his helmet and his Apple Watch with saving his life after falling from his mountain bike and being knocked unconscious during a recent excursion in a local park.
Bob Burdett of Spokane, Washington was left bleeding and helpless at the bottom of a famous local cycling route called Doomsday Hill around noon on September 15 after he lost control of his bicycle before tumbling to the ground and smashing his head on the unforgiving concrete.
Burdett was wearing a helmet, but the fall still knocked him out, dislocated his shoulder and multiple ribs, and opened a gash above his eye that left blood streaming down his face and onto the asphalt.
‘A hit that hard could have killed me if I weren’t wearing it,’ Burdett told the Seattle Times.
The blow also activated the 62-year-old’s Apple Watch fall detection feature, which called 911 for Burdett after he didn’t move for 60 seconds.
Burdett was wearing a helmet, but the fall still knocked him out, dislocated his shoulder and multiple ribs, and opened a gash above his eye that left blood streaming down his face and onto the asphalt
The blow also activated the 62-year-old’s Apple Watch’s fall-detection feature, which called 911 for Burdett after he didn’t move for 60 seconds
Emergency responders were alerted at 12.02pm and an ambulance was on scene in less than a minute, the Seattle Times reported.
The watch also sent a text to Burdett’s son, Gabe, who was supposed to meet his dad nearby.
The younger Burdett arrived on scene after the ambulance and EMTs who were already tending to his father, before taking him to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center.
‘It was amazing. I’m incredibly thankful,’ Gabe said of the watch’s safety features.
Bob Burdett said the Apple Watch’s fall protection feature was the main reason he bought it some time after starting his cycling hobby in 2015
The watch sent a text to Burdett’s son, Gabe (right), who was supposed to meet his dad nearby
Spokane Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said the incident was the first local situation he knows of where an Apple Watch called 911.
‘It calls 911 automatically, which is pretty remarkable,’ he said. ‘It’s just another opportunity for the fire service to leverage technology and use it to improve people’s lives.’
Bob Burdett said the Apple Watch’s fall protection feature was the main reason he bought it some time after starting his cycling hobby in 2015.
‘It became one of those things where I knew I was going to be riding alone a lot, he said. ‘I didn’t know if it was going to work, but I guess it does.’
Gabe says he now plans to buy his own Apple Watch.