Carpinteria-Summerland Fire crews rescue patient from vehicle over cliff

CARPINTERIA, Calif. – Carpinteria-Summerland Fire crews were rescuing a patient whose vehicle had gone off the cliff on Highway 150 just north of Highway 101 near Carpinteria on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Carpinteria-Summerland Fire Protection District.

Crews were called to reports of a single-vehicle rollover that had gone off the side of the cliff just after 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Fire Chief Greg Fish told News Channel 3-12.

The California Highway Patrol incident log page reported that the vehicle was 50 feet down "a very steep embankment."

Fish said that crews believed the vehicle to be a van, but it was hard to tell because of how "mangled the vehicle was."

Crews were still attempting to rescue the patient as of 4:15 p.m. on Tuesday, and Fish said that the patient would have to be transported to the hospital for moderate-to-severe injuries once they are rescued.

The cause of the crash remained under investigation.