What you need to know
- Susan Putman experienced a freak accident at her floral studio.
- She was able to use her AirPods to call 911 and save her life.
- The story highlights the ways that everyday devices can help in a life-threatening situation.
We're very used to hearing stories about the Apple Watch helping someone out in a dire situation but this story is all about AirPods.
As reported by People, Susan Putman, a florist from Bernardsville, New Jersey, was working on a floral arrangement in her studio with her AirPods in when she experienced a freak accident.
"I was working on a four-foot horseshoe wreath, and I stepped back to look at it and I forgot its box was sitting on the floor," Putman tells PEOPLE. "I must have been very conscious about not smashing the wreath because I tripped and flew maybe 8 ft. in the air and my head landed against these metal poles."
When Putman realized that she was bleeding from her head, she used her AirPods to call emergency services. She credits wearing her earbuds for why she was able to get help right away.
"When I reached to my head and felt that it was bleeding, I realized that my AirPods were in," she says. "There was a lot of blood and I freaked out, but I immediately said, 'Hey Siri, call 911.' ""The only thing I remember is the two police guys getting there and one is holding a towel to my head, and he says to the other one to tell the ambulance to get there right now because I was losing a lot of blood," she says. "Honestly, if it had been another 15 minutes, I'm not sure I'd be here. There's no doubt about it — if I didn't have my AirPods in, I would've died."
While using a voice assistant to call emergency services isn't new, Putman has since found that many people are unaware they are able to use such a feature.
"I have a 25- and 27-year-old daughter, and they had no idea," she says. "I've had so many friends buy AirPods as a result of this and learn how to use Siri."
Putman even emailed her story to Apple CEO Tim Cook and received a response. She's since been sharing her story widely as a way to help educate more people on the potentially life-saving features contained in their everyday devices.
"I just think spreading the word is a really good thing," she says. "Hopefully this might help somebody else."
Apple currently offers the 3rd generation AirPods, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max. All three headphones work with Siri if you were ever to find yourself in a similar situation.
Bottom line: With better battery life, a completely new design, new features like Spatial Audio, and an IPX4 rating, the AirPods 3 are better than ever before. Plus, they sound better than the previous models and other than ANC, have pretty much all the same features as the AirPods Pro. These are fantastic AirPods for anyone looking to upgrade or buy their first pair.
