A team of volunteers and expert Land Rover drivers traveled Scotland’s Isle of Mull to deliver unique three-word address plaques to the island’s 2,000 addresses. The plaque distribution could result in saving residents’ lives in medical emergencies.
Joining Land Rover Experience drivers as part of the brand’s 70th year of humanitarian efforts, the volunteers provided a service for Mull’s 2,667 residents. The Addressing Mull project was in response to a request from the island’s doctor, Brian Prendergast, who asked for assistance in providing a unique identifier for each home and business on the island to assist responding medical personnel.
Many of the Isle of Mull’s streets lack formal names, and the local postal codes encompass large areas. Without precise local knowledge, it can be nearly impossible to find individual homes. Residents can provide their three-word locations when they need an emergency medical response.
“Using three-word addresses will vastly improve the ability of doctors and nurses, particularly those new to the island, to locate and assist remote-living patients,” Prendergast said. “We believe it will not only help us deliver a better routine health care service, but will save vital minutes in emergency call-outs that could literally save a life. The island is really grateful to What3words and Land Rover for putting Mull on the map.”
What3words, a geocoding system, generated the three-word addresses. The London-based company divided the world into 57 trillion 3-meter by 3-meter squares. The company’s technology assigns each square a unique 3-word address matched to a specific location on an online map.
The address words, currently available in 26 languages, are optimized for voice input and can be used with a variety of platforms, machines, and e-commerce checkouts, according to the company. The free What3words app is available for iOS and Android.
Jaguar Land Rover currently has more than 40 social-impact programs lined up with What3words.
“At Jaguar Land Rover, we are passionate about the impact technology can make when combined with the talent of our people,” Chris Thorp, Jaguar Land Rover responsible business director, said. “Addressing Mull by Land Rover is the ideal way to launch our global humanitarian partnership with What3words, which has the potential to transform isolated communities around the world by making them more accessible.”
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