Police are urging everyone to download a smartphone app they say is saving lives.

What3words points to a very specific location. Its developers have split the world into 57 trillion squares, each measuring three metres by three metres.

Each of those squares has a unique, randomly assigned three-word 'address'.

Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland is marble.messaging.hacksaw. And messed.boom.buzzards is where Lands' End in Cornwall lies.

By looking on a special map, you can see the codename of your childhood home or your favourite coffee shop, WalesOnline reports.

This is all the work of British company what3words, who divided the planet into 57 trillion squares to create a new way of thinking about location.

Initially designed to help ease the organisation of concerts, the potential of these code names was quickly realised for many other purposes - including for navigation and disaster relief.

A what3words location

In the UK it has proved useful for various emergency services, who have used the app to pinpoint the exact location of people needing help.

Used by Avon and Somerset Police

Avon and Somerset Police rescued a mother and daughter who were in a car crash in rural Somerset, using the technology to figure out exactly where they were.

Sam Sheppard from the force told BBC News: “Having this type of technology integrated within our command and control system has changed the way we are able to deal with incidents where the location isn’t known.

"We are moving away from the old style questioning - 'Where have you come from?', 'Where are you going?', 'What can you see?'

"These questions take time and aren't always that accurate.”

These three word codenames have been used in other cases too, such as locating a lost child along a remote riverside path and finding the exact site of a traffic accident.

A call handler recently used it to send help to someone who had been sexually assaulted and then held captive.

The app is free and works across 26 languages, including French, Afrikaans, and Hindi.

You can look at the what3words map here.
