A driver died after his car veered off Highway 1 and plunged nearly 500 feet down a steep cliff onto a California beach, despite desperate efforts by lifeguards to reach him.
The driver, a 58-year-old Santa Rosa man, was driving a black 2017 Honda Pilot when his car went over the edge of the road just before 1 p.m. on Monday about a mile south of Scott Creek Bridge near Davenport, KSBW 8 reported.
The car veered off the west roadway edge, struck a call box, tumbled through vegetation and plunged off the cliff, officials said.
Two California State Parks lifeguards swam from Greyhound State Beach to the pocket beach where the car landed. They had to run and swim for nearly a mile to reach the driver, who had been ejected from the car and was in the water.
“The two lifeguards, marine safety officers, that were first on scene did pull the victim out of the water and perform CPR until the victim was long-lined, or hoisted, off the beach and up on the cliff, where resuscitation efforts were continued,” Santa Cruz Marine Safety Captain David Bodine said.
Despite efforts to save him, the man was pronounced dead at the scene. He was the only occupant in the car, officials said.
Authorities have not shared the driver’s identity or said what caused the car to veer off the roadway.
It was also unclear whether alcohol or drugs were factors in the crash.
An autopsy will determine the cause of death, officials said.
The California Highway Patrol is investigating the cause of the crash.
In February, another driver died when their car went off a cliff on Highway 1 at Big Sur, a popular viewpoint on the iconic highway. The crash came less than a month after the stretch of Highway 1 between Monterey and northern Big Sur, which includes Hurricane Point, was re-opened to the public for the first time since 2023 when it was closed due to ongoing landslides.
