Skiing fall mistaken for car crash after smartwatch calls 911 on Mt. Washington

Police with the Comox Valley RCMP are asking community members to keep an eye on their smartwatch devices after police received an accidental 911 call from an Apple watch last month.

On Jan. 26, Mounties say they received a 911 call for a car crash on Mount Washington, B.C.

Police, firefighters and paramedics all received the call. However, first responders were unable to find any signs of a crash.

Later, RCMP were able to confirm that the 911 call was actually sent automatically by an Apple watch after a skier on the mountain fell.

"There is a crash detection software installed on newer Apple devices," said Comox Valley RCMP spokesperson Const. Monika Terragni.

"We are asking users to disable the crash detection if you’re skiing or snowboarding with others in a populated area, or to check your device immediately after a fall to ensure it did not call 911," she said.

"It is also important to keep your device up-to-date with the latest operating system as developers continue to tweak this feature," said Terragni.

Another smartwatch was recently in the spotlight for making an emergency call on Vancouver Island.

In early February, a cyclist was hit by a car in Victoria and their smartwatch automatically called 911. The cyclist was then taken to hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

At the time, tech analyst Carmi Levy said the technology could be crucial for helping people who need immediate aid, and can help ease the minds of older people since some smartwatches have fall detection.

However, he cautioned that smartwatches can give off false positive, which can be triggered by bumping into things or even if someone is a particularly passionate dancer.

He said he sometimes looks at his own watch to make sure he hasn't accidentally called 911. 

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