The Apple Watch Fall Detection feature has saved two lives so far in May (or at least there were two cases covered by the media). One of them was hit by a 17-year-old driver in Minnesota who fled the scene (hit-and-run), and the other was an 83-year-old man whose knees gave out while walking on the Ohio River Trail. The watch detected their falls and called emergency services on their behalf.
The Hit-And-Run victim’s wife and children were also notified via the Emergency Contacts feature. He emailed Tim Cook, who wished him a speedy recovery after the accident. He suffered from rib and tailbone injuries. The 83-year-old’s fall was caused by a blood clot, one of the many sudden health conditions that can cause a fall.
If you are at a high risk of falling due to an illness, or you are elderly, you can enable Fall Detection on your Apple Watch by going to Settings > SOS > Fall Detection > Check ‘Enabled’.