On the afternoon of Tuesday, May 16th, park dispatch received a 911 transfer call from San Francisco FD reporting a falling accident. Two beach-goers came upon an unresponsive man in his 30s lying on a coastal rock outcropping in front of Battery Crosby. The man had apparently tried to hike from the battery to the beach on a steep, unstable social trail and had slipped and fallen from 15 to 20 feet. Rangers, Park Police officers, Presidio and San Francisco FD firefighters, and Golden Gate Aquatic Rescue personnel responded. Land and water rescue efforts were hampered by the terrain. A Coast Guard helicopter was accordingly summoned to retrieve the man’s body. The victim was hoisted to the helicopter on a litter, then flown to a landing zone at Fort Scott. Park Police investigators and staff from the city medical examiner’s officer are conducting a follow-up investigation. For additional information and a video of the recovery effort, click on the link below.
