A California man says his Apple Watch saved his life after a bicycle crash that left him paralyzed. Ryan McConnaughey was mountain biking in San Diego county when he went headlong over his handlebars and hit the ground hard, breaking his neck and leaving him unable to move. "I instantly couldn't move anything from my neck down," he recalls. "And I was by myself, literally in the middle of nowhere, so if I were to yell or anything, nobody would find me."
The 23-year-old knew that his life depended on him getting medical care right away and the only person who had any idea of where he was located was his friend, Peter, who he’d been riding with earlier that day. With his phone in his backpack and him unable to move, his only option was to use his Apple Watch to call his friend. He called out to Siri to call his friend and was connected to Peter over speakerphone.
While he lay there waiting for help, McConnaughey also called his girlfriend, Lauren Housh, from his watch and left her an emotional message that she later shared on TikTok, where it’s been viewed by millions. Peter was able to find McConnaughey and get him help and he was airlifted to a nearby hospital. He had to undergo multiple surgeries and months of therapy and still doesn’t have use of his legs, but he has regained some movement in his arms. And he knows how lucky he is. He still thinks about how if he hadn’t been wearing his watch, he might not have made it. "I think about it all the time," he says. "Nobody knew where I was. There's no way I would have survived through the night."
Source: People
Photo: Getty Images