# Emergencies using satellite text messaging (examples)?



## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

Currently there is a thread titled "GPS device". Very quickly the tread recommended GPS devices with integrated satellite text messaging(Help!/SOS! button). Below is the link to that thread. At the bottom of this page are likely additional related links on MB.









GPS device


What’s the best GPS device for extended River trips




www.mountainbuzz.com





Based on the experience of a personal friend, use of such devices during an emergency may not be straight forward. In his case in the Grand Canyon he interfaced through his outfitter to communicate with the Park Service. Not an ideal situation. 

Some personal location devices as purchased do not include satellite text messaging. They only have a Help!/SOS button, except when possibly linked to a Smart Phone. Also, not an ideal situation during an emergency.

Any personal experience stories would be welcome. More better to know who to text and what to expect when connected.


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## zaczac4fun (Mar 21, 2018)

GeoRon said:


> Currently there is a thread titled "GPS device". Very quickly the tread recommended GPS devices with integrated satellite text messaging(Help!/SOS! button). Below is the link to that thread. At the bottom of this page are likely additional related links on MB.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Had to use one this summer thanks to a flip with an injury in Hell's Half Mile on the Green (fortunately, everyone was okay). Our group carried 2 garmin InReach devices (explored and the mini). Once it was determined that the victim needed evaluation that wasn't available in the back country, we activated the SOS button. This connected us via text to Garmin's response center, with whom we shared our situation, concerns and request for medical evac (we also looked at possible ground evac which was determined unsafe in current circumstances). We coordinated a landing site slightly down river and transported the patient there. The only snag was that the landing site wasn't communicated to the medevac and they flew over us and landed at the initial site of incident. Fortunately most of our group was still there and pointed them back downriver where we had marked an "H" at an appropriate landing spot. All told it was about an hour from activation to landing. Messages took anywhere from 1-5 minutes round trip. 

We debriefed with a ranger at the takeout and it was suggested that in the future we ask the rangers for a number we could text directly in order to cut garmin's communication center out the chain. I also plan on programming ground-to-air and medevac frequencies into my radios for this coming season.

Overall, I am happy with the product- I think it finds the middle ground between a simple PLB with one-way SOS, and a sat phone. While communication might have been a bit faster/smoother, I don't think time to landing was impactfully delayed vs a sat phone. The cost, both initial, and subscription is much lower with the InReach vs sat phone. It uses the same Iridium network as the best phones so I think coverage is comparable. It's also helpful to have as an emergency contact for shuttles, family, pet-sitters, etc. 

Hopefully this is helpful, be happy to answer further questions.


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## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

Just asking, did you consider message exchange essential to expediting proper evacuation. This is a question regarding using the push button notification of need vs full text messaging(shared our situation, concerns, and request)? What are your thoughts concerning messaging? Essential or not? Did the Garmin center connect you immediately to your "needs". Who did you coordinate with then, local jurisdictions or NPS?


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## zaczac4fun (Mar 21, 2018)

I think two way messaging was helpful in coordinating the appropriate response.
I don't know what the standard sendout is for a PLB or simple SOS activation - and it probably varies by location.
Because I work in EMS, I like knowing I can coordinate the appropriate response for my situation. In this particular case we checked with the response center for possible ground evac options.
We had plenty of medical experience in our group, but I imagine for those that don't, the response center can advise appropriate evac options if you can communicate the situation.

As for the devices, both the Explorer and Mini really require smart phone connection for efficient messaging, but each can send an SOS independently and messages can be constructed using up/down to scroll through the alphabet. You can also preset a handful of messages to easily send.

The Garmin "GEOS" center relayed all of our texts to local dispatch who then coordinated with flight and NPS: not ideal but aside from the landing zone issue noted above (approx 3 min delay) it seemed to work.
Two ways around this: message a front country friend and have them call the appropriate number and relay for you or ask the rangers at launch if there is a cell phone you can try to message them directly on.

These devices are not as efficient as a sat phone, and if this were front-country where response is minutes away their shortcomings would not be acceptable in emergencies, but as I think most of us are aware, in the backcountry rescue is is usually measured in hours and in that scale, I feel the garmin is the best option out there for folks that want more than just a one-way SOS but don't want to rent or buy a sat phone. 

Does this help clarify?


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## dsrtrat (May 29, 2011)

My only experience with emergency use of these devices has been in Grand Canyon. Grand Canyon dispatch did not have the ability to receive direct text messages 2 years ago and I think it is still the case. In Grand Canyon we had an injury that required a helicopter evacuation. We didn't use the SOS function on the Garmin InReach Mini as we had set up a contact person who then contacted dispatch and relayed the message.

As this was a non critical evacuation situation we delayed it until the next morning and went downstream to a more suitable landing location. Once at the landing area we used a satellite phone to contact GC dispatch. They were able to relay information by satellite phone that allowed us to plan the evac that would have more time consuming via text to our contact person.

In our case the helicopter was busy with other tasks so they gave us a time + - an hour and kept us updated when there was a delay. We put out our panels to mark the LZ and wet the area down like we were directed but they landed in another location. We had two experienced S and R people both who had worked in GC as rangers pick out the LZ. They will always land where pilot thinks best.
We also had an air to ground radio but were unable to contact the helicopter on any of the known frequencies including the emergency band. I think they are too busy flying to fool around with us.

We also had an evac of a backpacker on a trip the next year that we took downstream to a suitable LZ and again used the satellite phone for contact with dispatch. They directed us to a suitable beach.That time they again didn't use our LZ.
Heather, one of the pilots flying the Grand Canyon NPS helicopter even remembered us from the year before, she can really handle that bird!

I have a satellite phone and an InReach Mini and think they are both good devices if you understand the limitations of the InReach for sending and receiving instructions. It is just about impossible to compose a message without it being linked to a smart phone so you have to manage two devices and keep them charged. My Iridium satellite phone a has removable batteries so you can carry a spare.

We also use the satellite phone and InReach in remote locations in Canada and Alaska above the arctic circle and both have been reliable as they work on the Iridium network. Also worked fine in South America. We have had side by side comparisons with Globlstar and Iridium in Grand Canyon and both work and both drop calls so for the lower 48 I think it's a toss up. 

My Iridium satellite phone also has a SOS button like the Mini but the older Iridium models lack this function. It will link to the Iridium website to give location information via Google Earth like the Mini as well for general contact / position OK messages. You can program it for many contacts. 

One advantage of the InReach in steep canyons is that it seems to lock on better than an Iridium satellite phone resulting in fewer dropped messages. We still found a few locations where we couldn't get service in Grand Canyon with either device.

I don't really like to have these things out all the time so try keep their use to a minimum but that's a whole other topic for discussion.


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## Pine (Aug 15, 2017)

I did quite a bit of research on this topic and ended up buying the Garmin InReach Mini. It pairs via bluetooth to android or iphone. Once paired with your phone, you can use the Garmin Earthmate app, to send regular SMS messages (texting) via the satellite connection to any phone number. You can also chat directly with the Garmin emergency dispatch center, and you can text with other InReach users. I carry two 10,000 mAh extra batteries that will recharge both the InReach unit and my phone several times over.

So far it has saved my butt a couple of times. Once I was able to fix a snafu with a shuttle while I was out on a solo trip in a remote river canyon with no cell coverage. I also used it once to text a friend to bring me a new battery for my truck. The battery crapped out at a very remote takeout with no cell coverage or other boaters around to give me a ride.

One time on a Middle Fork trip we had to use an Iridium sat phone to call for an airplane to meet us at Indian Creek, to fly out some one that was injured. From Indian Creek we had a tough time getting the phone connection to work reliably, and it took several call attempts over the course of a few hours to get the flight coordinated. By comparison, the InReach has worked very reliably even from deep, vertically walled canyons like Green Dragon.

While texting does have obvious limitations, if you have a designated person to coordinate with while you're on the river, it can be extremely useful.


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## Electric-Mayhem (Jan 19, 2004)

I have the old Delorme version of the Inreach and recently switched to the Zolio device which also uses Iridiium but doesn't have the GPS stuff. It still does the GEOS stuff though. I've found the Zolio to be a bit better for the messaging side and sending and recieving messages...but they both work. I've switch the Inreach to the bare minimum service as a backup now.

I've never had to use either for a true emergency, but have used an Inreach for a few incidents and obviously keeping in touch with the outside world. I mostly got it because I have to keep tabs on my mom with Alzheimer's when I'm on trips. I have been on a trip where we had to Evac someone, but we used a Sat Phone to coordinate that. It worked allright, but we had to call dispatch back like 4 or 5 times since you'd only get a minute or two out of it.

The main incident involving the use of an Inreach that happened was a boat getting untied at Tuckup Canyon in the Grand. We had several Inreach devices on the trip (I actually wanna say it was 4 or 5...kinda crazy but becoming normal). The boat untied itself overnight and proceeded downstream and eventually floated into Lava Falls on its own. The TL on the trip was always up early around dawn and discovered that this one had gone missing. He and another Kayaker tore ass down stream to try and find it and they took an Inreach with them and I had mine so that they could keep in touch. It worked pretty well. The boat was no where to be seen and other trips hadn't seen it. We were planning on camping another night before Lava, so the kayakers ended up giving up but we got the Inreach contacts from the group that was going downstream so they could let us know if they found it. We ended up staying at the Above Vulcan's Anvil camp that night. There was an OARS trip that camped downstream from us as well that had an Inreach and promised to let us know if they found the boat. I can't remember which group contacted us...but we got word that it had been found and was beach at Mile 185.0 camp. All told...there were 4-5 different Inreach devices from 3 or 4 different groups involved.

Not sure if its true or not, but I've been told that a Satellite Phone needs multiple satellites in view to work and the Inreach only needs to see a single satellite for a few seconds to send and/or receive a message....so that is another plus.


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## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

Concerning sat phones.......

Iridium is relatively global because it's constellation of satellites are networked. Connection to one satellite is necessary to connect to the constellation. That single satellite relays via the satellite network to find a ground station.

Globalstar is a bounce up to one satellite then back down to a ground station. In the middle of the Pacific there might not be a ground station within the bounce range, hence a permanent dead zone. Therefore, Globalstar is not global.

Where both worked I did not find much difference in usability. My experience should not be considered a proper comparison and was generally over 15 years ago when both phones were on the same trip.


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## Electric-Mayhem (Jan 19, 2004)

Globalsat has moved to being a company that contracts with several constellation networks now. Their website says Iridium is one of those networks. I think this is a relatively new thing... and stuff known as Globalsat likely used the Inmarsat network.

They are both global...its just a difference in how the constellation is set up. The Iridium network ones follow longitude lines for their oribit so they go over the poles and provide true global coverage. They do link with each other...but have to coordinate with ground stations too. There are 66 satellites in operation with an additional 9 satellites as in orbit spares.

Inmarsat has 11 geostationary satellites. They don't cover latitudes above 82degrees or below -82 degrees. My experience with being on trips with those phones requires a large southern view since the satellites are close to the equator.

There are a few other constellation networks that are partnered with Globalsat that are in development but not opperational.

Of course, SpaceX and their Starlink constellation are looking to dominate the market. They currently have 800+ with another 60 going up any day now) satellites in orbit and plan to have 1400 in the next few years. They have ok's by the FCC to have 12,000 satellites and have a application in to do up to 30,000. The goal is to do full global high speed internet. Currently, its not intended for mobile use and will require a transciever that is about the size of a Dish network dish...but I can't imagine that its not in the cards to make it mobile eventually. Affordable and prolific high speed internet is nearly inevitable in the next decade.


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## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

The below coverage maps defines the bounce nature of Globalstar/Spot reception hence not global. I just grabbed them direct from the Globalstar website. I'm amazed that Hawaii is outside Globalstar phone coverage. The upper map is satellite phone and the lower is Spot.

I suspect, any interfacing with other sat providers is likely contingent upon the ability of a Globalstar phone to connect to only a Globalstar satellite.









Coverage Maps | Globalstar US







www.globalstar.com


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## lisacanoes (Nov 6, 2012)

We used the Garmin inReach on a 2012 Grand trip and it saved a man's life. The two-way texting meant we could send vitals (hr &bp) to the crew in the chopper, so when they landed, they were up to speed and able to jump right in. Garmin liked the story so much they put it on their website.


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## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

lisacanoes, do you have a link to that website? I understand that it contains many accounts of actual use of InReach during emergency situations. Obviously, the more accounts that we owners can learn from, the more better.


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## lisacanoes (Nov 6, 2012)

GeoRon said:


> lisacanoes, do you have a link to that website? I understand that it contains many accounts of actual use of InReach during emergency situations. Obviously, the more accounts that we owners can learn from, the more better.


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inReach: Grand Canyon rafter airlifted out within one hour of SOS | Garmin Blog


With one misstep, Fuge fell about fifteen feet and landed on rocks suffering a serious head wound, a broken wrist, and numerous cuts and abrasions.




www.garmin.com


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