Inside Edition Tests What3Words, a New App That Could One Day Save Your Life

People get lost every day and because they're lost in the wilderness, if they call 911, they have no idea where they are. Now, there's a new app that uses geocode technology to address that.

Every square inch of Earth has been mapped into 57 trillion blocks and each block has been assigned a unique set of three words on what3words, a free app that users can download to their phones.

The Los Angeles Fire Department recently rescued some California hikers stuck in the wilderness by using what3words.

“What is the address of the emergency,” a dispatcher asks the stranded hikers, according to a recording of the call.

“I don’t know exactly where we are,” one says. “We’re stuck."

“I'm going to send you a text message real quick, OK? Let me know what three words your phone says,” the dispatcher replies.

Using those three words – Heavy, Send and Career—first responders were able to quickly find the hikers who were lost in a canyon.

With the help of first responders from the Austin, Texas, police department, Inside Edition also put it to the test. After receiving a message that provided three words—Checked, Chatted and Textiles—and sharing them with an emergency dispatcher, an officer quickly found chief investigative correspondent Lisa Guerrero.

“Really, what3words has taken the search out of search and rescue, if you will,” Lieutenant Kenneth Murphy, who runs Austin's emergency dispatch center, tells Inside Edition.

The founder of the free app also wants everyone to know how important the technology is. “One day, it may just save your life,” CEO Chris Sheldrick says.

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