[Video] Helicopter Rescues Injured Hiker, 2 Good Samaritans, From Rock Surrounded by Crashing Surf

A 24-year-old Gilroy man suffered major injuries after he fell from a cliff onto rocks and into the surf below at the Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin County Saturday evening, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP Officer James Andrews said the man was hiking with a church group from Gilroy near Arch Rock when either the ground gave way or he slipped, falling some 60 to 80 feet to the rocks below. The man hit the rocks and ricocheted into the surf, but Andrews said he was able to pull himself out of the water and onto a rock outcropping.

Two good Samaritans ran down a narrow goat trail to the beach and then swam to the rock to assist him, Andrews said. The surf was coming in quickly, stranding the three people on the rock, Andrews said.

Some other people ran to an area where they could get cell phone service and called 911 around 4:15 p.m., he said. Marin County firefighters then called the CHP to assist with a helicopter rescue.

A Marin County fire captain boarded the CHP helicopter and helped to hoist the man from the rocks below, Andrews said.

The CHP helicopter transported the man to the Bear Valley Visitor Center inside the park, where Andrews said an ambulance was waiting to transport him to a trauma center. The helicopter then returned to pick up the two good Samaritans who were still stranded on the rock. Andrews said the man is expected to survive his injuries.

The rescue took approximately an hour to complete, he said.

--Bay City News

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