GENEVA (AP) - Stranded skiers and hikers have a new way of calling for help that Switzerland’s air rescue service hopes will save time and lives.
The Rega group has launched a mobile application to speed up emergency operations, which has already prompted two successful rescues.
Spokesman Christian Trottmann says a skier who got lost near the central Swiss town of Interlaken late Thursday was rescued after using the app to transmit his exact location, personal details and the battery life of his phone to rescuers. Last week it saved two snowshoe walkers.
Trottmann said Friday that the app available only in Switzerland was downloaded 60,000 times since its launch last week.
The nonprofit group plucks thousands of distressed people from the Alps each year.
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