VKS-737 Radio Network and other Australian emergency services accept what3words

What is what3words?

what3words is the easiest way to tell VKS-737 Base Station Operators, Triple Zero (000) and other emergency service organisations exactly where you are when you need help. what3words has divided the world into 3 metre squares and given each one a unique three word identifier.

Where to find the three words to identify your location.

Australia’s emergency services have developed a free life-saving mobile phone app, Emergency+, which helps
people call the right emergency number and confirm their location.
what3words is available in this app, and emergency services in Australia accept and use what3words addresses
to find callers faster.
The Emergency+ app displays a caller’s current what3words address so they can easily give Australian
emergency services their exact location and receive help quickly.

Alternatively the free what3words mobile phone app can be used to obtain the 3 words for your location.

Do I need Wi-Fi, mobile data or phone reception to use Emergency+ or the what3words app?

Both the Emergency+ and what3words mobile apps work offline, so you will be able to find the what3words
address for your current location on either app without Wi-Fi, mobile data or phone reception.
It is important to remember that GPS / Location is enabled on your phone for the apps to be able to find your
location.
Once you have identified the 3 words for your location you will be able to pass these via radio to the relevant
operator handling your emergency.
Please note that you will need a network signal to place a telephone call to Triple Zero (000) if you are not calling
via radio.

Why can’t I just share the GPS coordinates displayed on the Emergency+ or what3words app?

You can share GPS coordinates, but saying 16 numbers over the radio or phone is hard and takes time.
what3words addresses are a much more human-friendly way of giving the same information. They are easy to
say over the radio or phone and much harder to mix up, which is really useful in emergencies.

Want more information

If you need more information about what3words it is highly recommend that you assign 20 minutes of your time
to watch this excellent You Tube Video from Chris Sheldrick, the original developer of this system:
Watch the “what3words” Video Here