Rollercoasters have triggered some new iPhones to make emergency calls. As per the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), at one US amusement park the plummeting rides activated the phones' crash detection system.
The feature introduced in the new iPhone 14 and Apple Watch Series 8, Ultra and SE with the latest OS.
Apple told the newspaper the technology is intended to provide "peace of mind" and will continue to improve over time.
Although a new feature on the iPhone, the crash detection system recently demonstrated its utility alerting emergency services to a fatal accident in Nebraska.
Google's Pixel phone already has a crash detection system.
Previous reporting by the WSJ testing Apple's system in a variety of collisions including using the skills of a "demolition derby" driver did not suggest the system was overly sensitive.
However, the newspaper was provided with records of six calls to local emergency services from iPhones whose crash detection system had been triggered while on rides at Kings Island amusement park outside Cincinnati, Ohio.
In a recording of one of the calls obtained by the newspaper an automated message from an iPhone can be heard saying: "The owner of this iPhone was in a severe car crash and is not responding to their phone". The sound of the amusement park is audible in the background.
Drivers have also described instances where the crash detection system has been triggered because phones were dropped while their vehicle was moving.
Also Read: Apple unveils iPhone 14 with satellite SOS
False alerts can waste emergency services' time, and cause distress to relatives.
"We are very vigilant about calls. No call doesn't get checked. You get used to calls that are not an emergency, but it's wear and tear on the dispatchers," Melissa Bour, the director of emergency services for Warren County which received the calls - told the WSJ.
Rollercoaster news site Coaster101 noted that Dollywood a theme park partly owned by country music performer and literacy campaigner Dolly Parton also warned riders of the risk of false alerts.