Tony Jauncey, was walking across the road at a roundabout in Kidderminster on January 19, 2024, when he was hit by a car whose driver did not follow the rules of the roundabout, cutting a corner and hitting the octogenarian as he was crossing.

For those readers who are not familiar with roundabouts (also known as rotaries or traffic circles in some areas), a roundabout is a circular intersection in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction. Drivers are to enter the roundabout as openings appear.

Although many roundabouts have a large grassy island surrounded by multiple lanes and four or more roads splitting off of it. However, the roundabout in question was more of a small, painted circle at an intersection.

Roundabouts have proven to be safer for both drivers and pedestrians — as long as the drivers follow the rules. However, the driver in this case did not, instead cutting a corner while driving in the incorrect lane and striking pedestrian Jauncey.

Local newspaper Shropshire Star reports Jauncey survived the incident with a broken collar bone, cracked ribs, and severe bruising. Disturbing CCTV footage (available on the article page), shows Tony being hurled through the air and landing on his back after being struck.

Fortunately, Jauncey’s new Apple Watch detected him being knocked to the ground, interpreted it as a fall, and asked if he would like to contact emergency services.

I was walking back to my car which was parked in [British supermarket] Aldi and was crossing the road when I felt a thud. The next thing I saw was the bumper of a car in front of me… I was lying in the road, I was not able to move.Tony Jauncey, speaking with the Shropshire Star

While there were people at the scene who were able to assist Jauncey in his time of need, he credits the Apple Watch with contacting emergency services so quickly.

“The other thing I’d like to point out is my Apple Watch,” he continued. “The watch detected a fall and asked if I wanted to call the emergency services.”

“I could cancel the request by pressing a button on the side of the phone,” he said, “but I left it and as a result, the phone called 999.” (the UK’s equivalent of 911).

Jauncey did receive assistance from others at the scene, including three off-duty nurses who were in the area. It should also be noted that the accident was not a hit-and-run, as the driver of the car that struck Jauncey stopped and helped provide assistance.

“There were lots of people who came over to help which really put me at ease,” Jauncey said.

The Apple Watch Fall Detection feature has saved the lives of countless people since it was introduced alongside the Apple Watch Series 4 in 2018. While that feature sometimes worked for car crashes, as in the case of this 87-year-old Maine woman discovered a few years ago, Apple refined it in 2022 to add proper Crash Detection to the Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch SE 2, and Apple Watch Ultra.