what3words app could be a lifesaver for farmers

Farmers are being urged to download the potentially life-saving what3words app on to their mobile phones.

what3words has divided the globe into 57 trillion three metre by three metre squares and given each square a unique combination of three words — a what3words address.

The app is used by more than 85% of UK emergency services, as well as breakdown providers such as the AA. It helps them quickly pinpoint the location of any emergency.

Farmer Tom encouraged farmers to think ahead and download the app after his Idle tractor that was connected to a cultivator saved a neighbour’s crop.

A member of the team spotted a tiny bloom of smoke about a mile away on their neighbour’s land which turned out to be an electricity mast that had touched a tree, sparks landing on the ground and started a fire between their farm and Tom’s — potentially destroying hundreds of acres of grain if the fire hadn’t been spotted.

Thinking fast on their feet the team got out their tractor and managed to keep the fire under control by cultivating the ground — turning the dry, flammable vegetation, to leave bare earth over which fire can’t travel as fast — until the emergency services reached the scene.

Praised by the fire brigade team for providing an exact location, Tom recommends what3words as essential to farmers, encouraging them to download the app as well as add a cultivator to their tractor if without one this season.

The app is free to download on both iOS and Android, and does not need an internet connection to find your current what3words address because it uses GPS.

Clearly share your what3words address with the call handler, along with any other location descriptions you may have — such as nearby roads, towns or any other landmarks you can see.

Or, if you don’t have the what3words app already installed, the emergency services call handler might send you an SMS text including a link that will open what3words in your internet browser.

The page will display your current what3words address, and your device’s GPS accuracy in metres. Click the ‘refresh’ button to refine the accuracy of your GPS.

Clearly share your what3word address with the call handler, along with any other location descriptions you may have — such as nearby roads, towns or any other landmarks and landmarks.

The emergency service can then coordinate a response directly to the exact location where help is needed.