SAN JACINTO: “Seriously injured” hang glider rescued after mountainside crash
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SAN JACINTO – A hang glider suffered major injuries this morning and had to be airlifted from the side of a steep and rugged, mountainous area near the Soboba Flight Park Sunday, May 21. The sports complex, which is also known as Soboba Soaring, features paragliding and parasailing and is located at 255 Soboba Road, in an unincorporated area northeast of San Jacinto.
SEE RELATED: Victim safely hoisted from San Jacinto mountainside after glider crash, Nov. 2015
Two dozen firefighters responded to reports of a downed hang glider in the mountains near San Jacinto. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photo
The victim, who has only been identified as an adult male, crashed in such a remote area that fire officials at the scene called for a technical hoist to rescue the seriously injured man from the mountain.
Cal Fire/Riverside County firefighters and other emergency first responders were dispatched to the area about 10:30 a.m., after receiving 911 reports of a hang glider who had collided with the mountainside.
Twenty-four firefighters from two engine companies responded to the emergency, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Public Information Officer Jody Hagemann. They were assisted by a Hemet Ryan Helitack Unit, paramedic squad and fire crew.
Firefighter/paramedics and other medical personnel used a small, side-by-side utility vehicle to get as close to the downed hang glider as possible, then hiked the rest of the way to the location where the seriously injured man was.
Once medical personnel managed to reach the injured hang glider, they evaluated his injuries and began treating him.
Due to the remote location of the victim and the extent of the person’s injuries, officials summoned Cal Fire’s Copter 301 to the location to perform a technical hoist to extricate the injured man from the mountainside.
A Hemet Ryan Helitack Team and fire crew responded to the accident. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photo
Before Copter 301’s arrival, the fire crew located and prepared a safe landing zone – using water to spray down a specific area, in an effort to minimize dust and debris that would be blown around during the chopper’s two planned landings and take offs.
Copter 301 soon arrived and after a brief landing to gather equipment needed for the rescue, took off again to head up the mountain to the victim’s crash site.
The aviation crew quickly and expertly performed a successful technical hoist, rescuing the injured man from the precarious spot where he crashed.
After being hoisted from the mountain, the victim was brought down the mountain to a waiting ambulance. He was then transported by American Medical Response ground ambulance to an area hospital for further evaluation and treatment. Newman listed the victim’s condition as serious.
No further updates regarding the nature or extent of the victim’s injuries had been provided.
Officials are investigating the cause of the crash.
This is a breaking story and will be updated as additional information becomes available.
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Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents video
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Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.