where people could have been rescued

but when you don't have the coordinates

finding them is impossible

and just comes down to luck.

LIFELINES

26 September 2018

Andi Gremmel completed his 300th ascent of Mt. Schneeberg

the tallest peak in the Lower Austrian Alps.

I just had a gliding accident.

I can hardly hear you.

Hello?

Hello?

I received the information that a paraglider had crashed.

Thomas Schnalzger Emergency Call Centre Operator

Without further information

it would have taken hours to find this person.

Christian Steiner Helicopter Pilot

As the sun goes down

it gets ice cold.

A person could freeze to death

even in the summer.

Many of us carry a smartphone

with very accurate location technology

but we realised, in an emergency

that location wasn't being sent to emergency responders.

Maria Garcia Puyol Senior Software Engineer, Google

So we saw an opportunity to help a lot of people.

In 2016, Android and EENA launched a new service

that sends a caller's location directly to emergency services.

In Andi's case, I received his location

with the aid of this new technology.

His position was accurate to 6 metres.

The moment that you realise you can help someone

the feeling is indescribable

because that is the purpose of it all

the reason why you do this

why you take certain risks yourself.

It's an incredible moment

the first time you hear the stories

about how location technology is helping real people.

It's a privilege to help people in distress

and that's why we want to make it available

for more people out there.

Android Emergency Location Service

has been activated by more than 20 countries worldwide

and helps first responders locate over 2 million calls a day.

Google