Woman survives on radiator water for a week after California cliff crash

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This was published 5 years ago

Woman survives on radiator water for a week after California cliff crash

Updated

Portland:  An Oregon woman who disappeared a week ago was rescued from the bottom of a California coastal cliff where she survived by drinking water from the radiator of her wrecked sports utility vehicle, authorities said on Saturday.

Angela Hernandez, 23, of Portland was found by a pair of hikers on Friday evening after they saw her wrecked Jeep Patriot SUV partially submerged at the bottom of a 70-metre cliff in the Big Sur area, Monterey County Sheriff's Office spokesman John Thornburg said.

Her disappearance captured widespread attention after she and her vehicle were last seen on a surveillance camera video at a Carmel petrol station on July 6, about 80 kilometres north of the stretch of Highway 1 where she was found.

Her disappearance sparked a major search as her frantic family awaited news, and a $US10,000 reward was offered for information.

The hikers discovered Hernandez conscious, breathing and with a shoulder injury, Thornburg said.

Miraculous survival: Angela Hernandez.

Miraculous survival: Angela Hernandez. Credit: San Mateo County Sheriff's Office

Chelsea and Chad Moore, who were walking on the isolated stretch of beach on Friday, first saw her Jeep. Hernandez was lying close by, conscious and in remarkably good condition, screaming for help.

While Chad Moore stayed at the scene, his wife ran back to the site where they were camping to raise the alarm.

Authorities tend to Angela Hernandez after she was rescued, in Morro Bay, California.

Authorities tend to Angela Hernandez after she was rescued, in Morro Bay, California. Credit: Monterey County Sheriff's Office via AP

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Rescuers used a hoist to get her up the cliff and to a helicopter which flew her to a nearby hospital.

She was in fair and stable condition but appeared to have suffered a concussion during the collision, the California Highway Patrol said in a statement.

Hernandez was on a road trip from her home in Portland to visit her sister Isabel in Lancaster, Los Angeles County, when she crashed.

She told investigators she swerved to avoid hitting an animal along the famously winding stretch of Highway 1 on July 6 and plunged over the cliff north of Nacimiento Fergusson Road.

Although she had managed to get out of the wrecked SUV, which was partially submerged, her attempts to climb back up the cliff failed.

California Highway Patrol said she appeared to have a minor shoulder injury and concussion and had survived "by drinking water from the radiator of her vehicle".

It was unclear whether she had any food.

"It's usually the fall that gets them, or the ocean that gets them, and she was lucky to survive both," Thornburg said.

The Monterey County Sheriff's Office posted pictures of the remarkable rescue, showing paramedics treating the young woman on the beach under the sheer cliff.

Isabel Hernandez, wrote: "My sister is alive, she's talking, and she's still trying to come to understand everything.

"She's a fighter and she fought this long and she will continue to. It's not going to be an easy recovery. I hope everyone will have patience for her and her recovery.

"I just want to thank everybody, everybody. Sorry I'm just in shock. Everybody that ... helped us through the whole thing and Angela will be OK.

"I'm so happy."

Reuters; The Telegraph, London

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