The Emergency Situations Ministry created an iPhone application enabling users to call rescuers and inform relatives immediately in case of emergency, the ministry said Friday.

In order to call the emergency service, a user should press a red button called "Send an SOS signal" on the application's main page, newswires reported, citing a ministry spokesman.

Calling the emergency service will be possible from any Russian region because the application will identify a user's location and mobile operator automatically, the spokesman said. 

The application, which is already available to download from the Apple App Store for free, will also send a text message to a user's relatives automatically after pressing the button, if a user adds emergency contacts to his or her phone book after uploading the application.  

It will also enable users to find the nearest branch of the Emergency Situations Ministry, the  spokesman said.

The ministry plans to create a similar application for other cell phone models, he said.