A driver was stranded for two days at the bottom of a 400-foot cliff in Big Sur, California, after his car went over the edge, police said.
After being alerted by Pacific Grove Police, the California Highway Patrol’s Coastal Air Operations Unit was able to locate the man, an employee of the Post Ranch luxury resort, after leaving work at around 11:30 p.m. Sunday night. An aerial search was conducted on Tuesday after reports that he had not returned home. CHP said.
A CHP plane that was already in the area responded and searched the shoreline for about 20 minutes before discovering the vehicle on the beach below Highway 1, about 400 feet below the road, around 9 a.m.
“A man was standing next to the vehicle frantically waving a makeshift flag,” the CHP said.
The Big Sur Fire Chief waited for a helicopter to arrive and began roping down the victim and assessing his injuries.
A driver said he was driving home Sunday night when he swerved to avoid a collision with a deer, veered off the highway and fell hundreds of feet over the edge of a cliff.
He said he was thrown through the sunroof as the car spun.
There is no beach access or trail where the car stopped and the car was not visible from the roadway, the CHP said. It was impossible for him to climb out again.
Dramatic video released by the agency shows a man and his vehicle falling into brush at the bottom of a sheer cliff as rescue workers pull the victim and the Big Sur Fire Chief from the crash scene.
Despite being stranded for almost two days, he was taken to Natividad Medical Center in stable condition and treated for only moderate injuries.
