By james art An ambulance service helped save an injured owl in north Oxfordshire with the help of an app.
The owl was mid-flight when it hit the top of a South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) ambulance returning to base during a night shift.
Named Gilbert, the bird was described by ambulance staff as “dazed” by the unexpected collision on the A361, south of South Newington near Banbury.
The ambulance crew called the vet out of hours and shared the exact location of the incident using what3words, an app used to track locations over a network.
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The technology is also available in more than 60 languages and is used by more than 85 per cent of UK emergency services.
The Ambulance Service says it means Gilbert could get the care he needed as quickly as possible.
Gilbert the owl (Image: SCAS) After the vet arrived at the scene using what3words, Gilbert was picked up and treated.
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He is now fully recovered and released at home.
The app is free to download for both iOS and Android devices and works offline, “making it easy to use in areas with unreliable data connections, such as rural farms, national parks and campsites.”
What3words is also used by the AA to enable a faster response to incidents, with hundreds of AA members using the technology to report the exact location of breakdowns every day.