Blind man used phone app to rescue dad from car after it fell down 10 foot verge

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A man who’s registered blind and rescued his father from their car after it plummeted down a 10-foot verge right into a physique of water, dragging him to security, has urged others to obtain the location app that helped emergency providers attain them and save their lives.

Martin Ralfe, 30, an purposes and expertise programmer for Merseyside Fire and Rescue, had been travelling dwelling together with his dad, John, 58, late one night in December 2023 when rain brought about their car to slip on the highway.

Falling off the sting of the highway, the pair fell 10 toes right into a physique of water, and Martin rescued his dad from the sunroof earlier than utilizing the what3words app to assist emergency providers pinpoint their precise location utilizing a novel three-word mixture.

The app enabled a police car to discover them inside quarter-hour after Martin had dragged his dad up the verge earlier than dropping vitality.

Martin, who lives in St Helens, Merseyside, together with his spouse, Samantha, 32, a charity dwelling customer, and their son, Leo, two, and in addition has a seven-year-old daughter from a earlier relationship, informed PA Real Life: “I don’t know what we would have done without what3words, there were no notable landmarks, it was dark outside and I’m blind – it saved our lives.

“Working for emergency services, I always knew it was a useful tool, but this experience validated that. If one good thing could come from this, it’s to raise awareness about what3words, as it could potentially save someone else’s life.”

It was December 2023 when Martin was travelling dwelling together with his dad, John, late one night once they encountered unhealthy climate whereas on the highway.

Martin mentioned: “It was raining and the road was a bit slippy. Fortunately, we’d left my guide dog at home to keep my mum’s dog company so luckily he wasn’t in the car with us.

“We were only travelling at around 15mph, it was a casual drive, no rush. I noticed the car wobble a bit, but there wasn’t much to it. Then the car just slipped and felt like we were shooting to the left side of the road. My dad managed to control it and we stopped.

“There was no problem and we were just about to have the ‘phew’ moment when again, the car just slipped and we fell off the edge of the road. We tumbled two or three times down a verge until we came to a rest with the car in the air and myself in the passenger seat with the window shattered and in water.”

The pair had plunged 10 toes down a slope and have been trapped in a physique of water that was three toes deep. With the car on its aspect, Martin was within the water whereas his dad, who was driving, was above him.

Martin added: “My dad shouted to me, ‘are you okay?’ and I was like, ‘I think so’. There was a bit of back and forth but he was a bit groggy with his answers so I was concerned.”

Martin managed to open the sunroof of the car and, releasing his dad from his seatbelt, the 30-year-old was in a position to information him out of the car by the roof.

Grabbing his phone, Martin referred to as emergency providers and tried to clarify his location to the operator.

He mentioned: “I was trying to figure out where I was and I asked my dad, ‘do you have a clue where we are?’ but he didn’t, then I remembered I had what3words on my phone.”

The location app, which is used by 85% of the UK’s emergency providers, provides a novel mixture of three phrases to each three-metre sq. on the earth, making it straightforward for emergency providers to pinpoint an actual location.

Martin had downloaded the app by probability a couple of months prior as he was testing it for work however by no means imagined he would wish it in his personal emergency scenario.

Giving the decision handler his three-word code, they knowledgeable Martin {that a} patrol car was quarter-hour away, nonetheless, Martin was confronted with the truth that it can be troublesome for rescuers to attain them on the backside of the verge so, leaving John by the financial institution, he started to seek for a approach out, clambering by brambles and a barbed wire fence.

Reaching the roadside, Martin turned again to return for his dad who couldn’t transfer his leg and started towing him by the collar of his coat.

Martin mentioned: “About three feet from the road, I started to lose energy and the adrenaline was starting to wear off. I rested my dad up against a tree and I could see blue lights in the distance.”

Martin remembers assembly law enforcement officials and sitting within the passenger seat of a police car earlier than falling unconscious.

He awoke in hospital in a head block carrying an oxygen masks. Scans gave him the all-clear from any critical head accidents and he was discharged at 7am the next morning with a extreme concussion, torn shoulder muscle and torn ligaments in his ankle.

His dad, John, suffered no accidents and it was a useless nerve that had stopped him from utilizing his leg immediately after the crash.

Now, Martin remains to be receiving physio for his shoulder and is “emotionally wary” when it comes to automobiles and rushing.

The dad-of-two has mentioned he’s now targeted on spreading the phrase concerning the what3words app.

He mentioned: “Truly, I don’t know what would have happened without what3words because we didn’t know where we were, we didn’t have a clue.

“It meant that we were able to give emergency responders the exact location of where we were so I wasn’t losing energy or losing time trying to find out our location and I could focus on getting us out of the situation we were in.

“I’m on a bit of a crusade to make sure anyone I speak to is aware of the app and has it downloaded because there’s no reason not to have it.”