Car over a cliff, waits eight hours for rescue

ILLINOIS VALLEY, Ore. – Illinois Valley Fire District and AMR were dispatched to a vehicle over the cliff passed the Page Mountain Snow Park on the California side just after ten this morning. The car had not been visible from the road because it was over the embankment by about 50 feet on a 40-degree slope– a single tree held the vehicle from sliding further down to the bottom of the ravine.

Rescuers say the driver had been in the vehicle since 2 a.m. and was hypothermic with a badly fractured leg and internal bleeding. Crews were able to set up a rope haul system to lower equipment and remove and stabilize the patient before flying him to Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center for further medical attention.

“I thought I was going to die in my car,” he said, his first words to the rescuers.