Technology helps OPP locate injured sledder
Looking for an injured snowmobiler who isn't able to say where he is? There's an app for that.
On Friday, January 8th, the Orillia OPP responded to a call about an injured snowmobiler who had been involved in a collision on Lake Couchiching. The driver was unable to say exactly where he was, and first responders were having trouble locating him.
This is where technology came into play. Staff at the Provincial Communication Centre at OPP headquarters used the What3words app, a geocode mapping system to locate the sledder. They texted a link to the app to the driver, who used it to pinpoint his location, which the app then encoded the location into a unique set of three words. The words, which are unique to a ach three-meter square plot of land - were communicated back to the PCC. From there, staff were able to direct emergency personnel to the collision site, where the driver was located and taken to hospital with non life-threatening injuries.
The OPP say this is one example of how the service is using new technology to enhance public safety and support successful outcomes by decreasing response times to high priority calls in which the caller does not know their exact location.
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