By: Karen Kucher
Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune
Firefighters used a helicopter hoist to rescue a driver who crashed his car off state Route 52 near Interstate 5 in La Jolla and ended up 50 feet down an embankment Wednesday morning.
The crash was reported around 8:10 a.m. but first responders initially couldn't locate the car. The vehicle — a BMW — sent out an emergency message to the 911 system after it crashed, which helped pinpoint its location, San Diego Fire-Rescue Battalion Chief Craig Newell told OnScene TV.
The 34-year-old driver had been traveling west on SR-52 to the La Jolla Parkway off-ramp when he saw something in the roadway and swerved to avoid it, said CHP Officer Jesse Matias. The car left the road and went down a steep embankment before overturning, Matias said.
Newell said firefighters initially had difficulty finding the car because it was so far off the road, but "luckily they saw the wheels from southbound 5."
Newell said the driver must have been going fast to launch his car such a distance.
"He flew so far off the transition ramp and landed in the iceplant" on a shelf, Newell said.
A paramedic was lowered to the crash site by a helicopter. The man, who was unconscious, was extricated from the car and put onto a gurney. He was transported via helicopter to a hospital to be treated.
Matias said the man was believed to have suffered minor injuries. Drugs and alcohol were not thought to be factors in the crash.
This story originally appeared in San Diego Union-Tribune.
©2022 The San Diego Union-Tribune. Visit sandiegouniontribune.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
