What3Words

If you haven’t come across What3words yet, you might want to read on. This free to download app is being hailed by the BBC as “the app that can save your life”.

Previously used at festivals such as Glastonbury and for disaster relief around the world, the app is now being used by Police in Bedfordshire & Northamptonshire and Fire & Rescue Services in Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire amongst others throughout the UK.

Emergency services are urging people to download the app that has already saved a number of lives. Created by a British company, it is designed to help people communicate a very specific location and can also work offline.

For those that spend time alone in remote areas for example, hiking or climbing, horse riding or cycling it could prove to be a lifesaver in the case of an accident. It is not easy to give an accurate location, miles from the road on a bridle way or cycle path but the app can pinpoint your exact location.

If you were enjoying a country walk in the middle of nowhere and came across a barn on fire, or an accident or emergency of some other kind how easy would it be for you to describe your exact location to the emergency services? “Up a hill, near a big tree, a couple of miles from the nearest road” wouldn’t be much use to the control room and valuable time could be wasted while they try to work out exactly where you are.

What3words gives a unique combination of 3 words for every 3m square location in the world and is even able to pinpoint more accurately than addresses where these exist. The coordinates give an exact location by linking through to a GPS map. This allows emergency services to attend the correct location saving vital minutes in some cases.

The success of the app for emergency purposes is reliant on awareness and people using it, many UK Emergency Services are encouraging its use so spread the word among family and friends – especially those who enjoy spending time in the great outdoors.