Siri calls Coast Guard to help save girl stranded in Hurricane Harvey
- sep
- 04
Apple's Siri helps woman with sickle cell anemia call the Coast Guard and escape Hurricane Harvey.
Tyler Frank has sickle cell anemia. It's a condition when, under stress, can cause "cell crisis" that is said to be even more painful than childbirth. Hurricane Harvey put Frank into cell crisis. And when 911 and social networks failed to help, she turned to Apple's Siri assistant.
Stranded outside in the rising waters of Hurricane Harvey, feverish and in great pain, 14-year-old Tyler Frank tried desperately to think of ways to get herself and her family to safety.
Calling 911 didn't work. Begging for help on Facebook and Instagram failed, too.
"I was like -- Siri's smart enough! Let me ask her!" Tyler said.
And indeed Siri was smart enough. With one inquiry to the Apple personal assistant -- "Siri, call the Coast Guard" -- Tyler got her whole family rescued after two days out in the storm.
Frank's call got her a rescue copter that declined to take her. So she called again. Second copter was the charm and she ultimately got the treatment she needed.
Her story is terrible and heroic, and here's hoping she, her family, her loved ones, and everyone affected by Hurricane Harvey gets the support they need to make it through the crisis and the aftermath.
We've seen Siri used in emergencies before, from "Hey, Siri" when an iPhone was thrown out of reach to Siri or SOS on Apple Watch when even "Hey, Siri" wasn't an option.
Apple's investing heavily in technologies and features designed to make us safer and get us help when we need it. Stories like this show that investment is paying off in lives saved.
If you have Siri or a virtual assistant or SOS feature, make sure your family knows how to use it.
