Satellite communications can offer a crucial link to emergency services and well as loved ones in the event of a disaster.

In October 2021,  Silvio Gentile from Italy, was involved in a serious accident in the mountains where he sadly lost his best friend, but his life was saved by rescue services after he was able to call them on his satellite phone.

Silvio got in touch with us to share his experience in the hope that passing on his advice for emergency communication preparedness, can help save more lives in the future.

Silvio’s advice for emergency communications preparedness:

• Always communicate your intended whereabouts for the day to your family or friends, especially when travelling remotely.
• Save emergency and personal phone numbers on your phone, and memorise them where possible.
• Program and subscribe to GEOS services before you make your trip. Visit myGEOS for all the latest information regarding GEOS and worldwide cover, including instructions on how to reliably dial emergency numbers anywhere in the world.
• Familiarise yourself with the different formats and international standards for latitude and longitude. An initial confusion almost sent the helicopter 50 miles south of the accident location.
• Keep the phone easily accessible and fully charged within your car, boat, backpack or aircraft. You need to be able to locate it easily after an accident.

Silvio’s experience, in his own words:

“I can honestly say the Iridium Extreme 9575 satellite phone saved my life.

On 24th October 2021, in the Abruzzo area of Italy, I was on an off-road adventure in my Toyota Land Cruiser HZJ78, when the edge of the trail collapsed forcing my jeep to slide off the mountain road.

After tumbling 500 meters down a ravine, the vehicle came to rest against a tree on a steep incline. I was injured and tragically my friend lost his life. There was no chance of descending or climbing to safety. ?My cellular phone was out of range, nobody was knowledgeable of the exact route we took that day.

I managed to find the Iridium Extreme 9575 satellite phone I always carry with me since years of flying and sailing adventures, and luckily the phone was intact and had good battery power remaining.

I was able to easily configure the GEOS service and in a few minutes was on the phone communicating my location coordinates. Within 15 minutes, I was successfully rescued by a helicopter and taken to the nearby hospital for treatment.

Without making that call, search and rescue would only have initiated their search after one to two days. The night was going to be very cold in the mountains and I could not safely access any of my other equipment in the car.

It would have been a scary time for sure!”