File photo (Image credit: CFJC Today).

By Aaron Schulze

Accidental SOS

Accidental SOS alert near Red Lake leads KSAR to issue reminder about SOS etiquette on cellphones

Aug 15, 2025 | 10:53 AM

KAMLOOPS — Kamloops Search and Rescue (KSAR) is reminding people about the proper protocol when it comes to accidentally triggering SOS alerts on a cellphone.

KSAR says two of its teams comprising of 12 members total deployed to the Red Lake area around 10:45 a.m. Thursday (Aug. 14). Once there, KSAR says it contacted some people at a construction site who said one of their iPhone’s SOS had been accidentally activated.

In a post to social media Friday, KSAR says the people in question believed they cancelled the alert, though they note the activation message had already been sent, which triggered the response.

KSAR says if you accidentally trigger the SOS feature on your phone, the best course of action is to cancel the call during the countdown.

“If the call goes through, remain on the line and explain your situation,” it added. “Although it may be frustrating, hanging up is not advisable as 911 responders will not assume everything is fine just because you ended the call; in fact, they may think the opposite, leading to a waste of time and resources.”

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The added, ‘you should simply say, ‘I’m sorry, my iPhone accidentally dialed 911, and I’m okay.'”

The Emergency SOS feature allows cellphone users to quickly call emergency services by pressing and holding specific buttons on their device, a move which may send their location to contacts and responders.

“To prevent accidental Emergency SOS calls on an iPhone, you can disable the “Call with Hold and Release” and “Call with 5 Button Presses” features in the Emergency SOS settings,” KSAR added.

“While these features can be helpful in emergencies, they can easily be triggered accidentally by holding down the side button or pressing it multiple times. By disabling these features, you can avoid accidentally calling emergency services while still retaining the option to dial emergency numbers manually when needed.”