New Delhi: In yet another incident where technology came to the rescue, an Apple Watch Ultra has saved the life of a 26-year-old Mumbai techie during a scuba diving accident near Puducherry.
The man, Kshitij Zodape, who works with an e-commerce company, was diving this summer when his equipment malfunctioned underwater, putting his life at risk.
Kshitij, who has been diving since 2020, recalled that the waters were choppy with poor visibility, barely 5 to 10 metres.
He had gone about 36 metres deep in the Bay of Bengal when his weight belt suddenly came loose.
This caused him to rise rapidly towards the surface, an ascent that could have been fatal.
“We were around 36 metres down when I suddenly started shooting up towards the surface,” he said.
The Apple Watch Ultra strapped to his wrist sensed the sudden vertical ascent and immediately began showing warnings on its screen, alerting him to slow down as the rapid rise could cause serious lung injuries.
However, Kshitij was unable to stop his uncontrollable ascent. The watch then triggered its emergency siren.
The loud siren, distinct from underwater sounds, alerted his diving instructor, who quickly swam back to assist him.
By then, Kshitij had already risen around 10 metres but was still being pushed upwards due to the buoyancy caused by the missing weight belt.
The intervention, guided by the Apple Watch Ultra's alarm, helped avert a life-threatening situation.
Kshitij admitted that he did not even know the watch had such a feature. “Before I could even realise, my watch started showing warnings. When I ignored them, it started chiming at full volume. My instructor immediately heard it,” he said.
Kshitij later wrote to Apple CEO Tim Cook to share his story. To his surprise, Cook personally responded, writing: “I'm so glad your instructor heard the alarm and quickly assisted you. Thanks so much for sharing your story with us. Be well.”
The Apple Watch Ultra, launched in 2022 as a rugged, adventure-ready device, includes several safety features, including the emergency siren.
The siren emits two alternating high-pitched sounds that can be heard up to 180 metres away, specifically designed to cut through environmental noise in emergencies.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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