A 65-year-old man was injured after falling roughly 45 feet while scaling rocks at a popular climbing site in Mission Trails Regional Park, according to officials and a witness.
The incident happened just after 11 a.m., according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.
Climbing instructor Kyle Heavey said he was teaching a student along Climbers Loop north when the man fell 40 or 50 feet. The man had been free solo climbing, or climbing without a rope, Heavey said.
He said he called 911, then he and a fellow instructor raced to assist the fallen man, who was not a part of their instructional group. Heavey said he and the other instructor are both certified wilderness first responders.
“We did what we could,” Heavey said, including trying to staunch the man’s bleeding.
Fire-Rescue spokesperson Jose Ysea said the man sustained a head injury. He was rescued by a Fire-Rescue helicopter and flown to a nearby hospital for treatment. He did not have information about the man’s condition.
Staff photographer Ana Ramirez contributed to this report.
