Daring Cliffside Rescue Saves Family Injured in Crash Near Devil’s Slide Transcript

Family of four was rushed to Stanford Medical Center this morning after their car plunged down the cliff on Highway One at Devil’s Slide. The accident prompted a daring rescue operation. KTVU’s South Bay Reporter Jesse Gary has this dramatic video.

Hovering feet above wreckage and feet from the San Mateo County cliff-side, a daring rescue of four trapped motorists.

We come out here unfortunately all too often for things like this, and this was nothing short of a miracle today that they survived.

Incident Commander Brian Pottenger says, around a quarter past 10, Monday morning, 911 calls to first responders of a car over the cliff in the Devil’s Slide area.

A car went off the cliff and two parents and two children are alive. It’s amazing.

Officials say a Tesla carrying a family of four traveling southbound on Highway One veered off the roadway.

We did have one witness state that the vehicle did veer off the road to the right-hand side, went up into the dirt area, and then proceeded to go off the cliff.

Rescuers say the vehicle dropped 300 feet, coming to rest on the rocks near the ocean. Multiple agencies, including the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, the CHP, the Coast Guard, and the Pillar Point Harbor Patrol responded. Once on scene, an army of men and women first responders could see a passenger signaling for help. While rescue helicopters were en route, the decision was made to remove the two children by rope. A nine-year-old boy and his four-year-old sister, both in the backseat, were brought up first.

We made the decision to hoist the children immediately instead of waiting for the ETA on the helicopters to arrive.

Once the children were safe, as many as three helicopter pilots from the CHP, the Coast Guard and the medical transport, performed precision maneuvers. They hoisted each adult from the wreckage while maintaining a safe distance from each other and the rocks.

And then they also have their own aircraft frequencies and they were able to talk to each other to coordinate the airspace and not impede each other during the rescues.

By early afternoon, all four passengers were headed to a nearby trauma center, and stopped traffic along Highway One was allowed to proceed. The passenger’s injuries ranged from minor to moderate, that’s for the children. The adult’s injuries are much more severe. The CHP is investigating why the driver veered off the roadway, which led to the crash and subsequent rescue. Near Devil’s Slide, Jesse Gary, KTVU, Fox 2 News.