Angela Hernandez fell into the cliffs of Big Sur with her SUV and survived. It was nothing short of a miracle for the 22-year-old from Portland who had gone missing one week back. She was on her way to Lancaster, and the vehicle ran off Highway 1. It landed in the bottom of a cliff in Big Sur, and she remained among the wreckage for seven days before being rescued.
CNN reports that two people who were walking in the area noticed the wreckage.
They relayed the information to 911 and a search was launched for survivors. It was hampered by heavy fog but they located her. She had injured her shoulder but was able to walk and talk and was shifted to a hospital. It was a difficult terrain and she was lucky to have survived the ordeal for seven days.
Events that led to the SUV accident
Accidents cannot be predicted, but they do often happen. That is how Angela Hernandez found herself at the bottom of a cliff in Big Sur among the wreckage of the SUV. She was going from Portland to Lancaster to meet her family and was in touch with family members providing updates at regular intervals on her journey.
Suddenly, she went silent and calls to her cell phone went straight to voicemail. The vehicle had apparently run off Highway 1 along the Pacific coastline. The family reported the matter to law enforcement agencies who began looking for her on July 6. She used social media regularly and her silence was a matter of concern.
The authorities zeroed in on Monterey County based on evidence captured by a business security camera, but the search was hampered due to the presence of fog. The woman was finally located. She had been able to get out of the partially submerged SUV but was stuck in the rocky surroundings.
Angela had a lucky escape
The sudden disappearance of Angela Hernandez and her SUV had grabbed widespread attention.
She was last seen with her vehicle on a surveillance camera video at a Carmel gas station on July 6. The Telegraph UK adds that the authorities said that Angela survived by drinking water from the radiator of her damaged vehicle. The rescuers took her to a hospital by helicopter and her condition was reported to be fair and stable. She had suffered a concussion during the collision, according to the California Highway Patrol. She has explained to investigators that she tried to avoid hitting an animal on the highway and plunged over the cliff in Big Sur. She was lucky to have survived the fall.