A Los Angeles-area man died after he fell while hiking along a perilous section of Oregon Coast over the weekend and was swept into the ocean, authorities said Monday.
The body of Henry Minh Hoang, 25, was recovered Sunday after being spotted at the foot of a cliff, Oregon State Police said in a statement Monday. The exact location was not disclosed.
Hoang was hiking Saturday at Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area, 96 miles west of Portland, when he slipped and fell about 20 feet, state police said.
He was believed to have been knocked unconscious in the fall and swept into the Pacific Ocean, they said. It happened about 5 p.m. along a section of shoreline known as “the punch bowl,” according to the agency.
“Witnesses lost sight of the victim and the rescue operation later transition[ed] into a likely recovery operation,” the agency said.
A operation was launched with the help of Tillamook County Sheriff’s Office, the Nestucca Rural Fire Protection District, and the U.S. Coast Guard but, as darkness advanced, it was suspended until morning, state police said.
Hoang’s body was recovered Sunday afternoon on a nearby shoreline, the agency said.
His path had taken him beyond a “safety fence” at the state park, where a sandstone headland gives visitors views of the roiling Pacific and its clash with a rocky coast, state police said.
The picturesque park is a draw featured in countless tourism guides. Oregon State Parks has long warned visitors about the unstable bluffs, composed of sea-sculpted sandstone.
“Beyond the fence, the cliff edge can — and will — crumble without warning,” it states on the web page for the Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area.
“It’s dangerous, and people have died after climbing over the safety fences,” the site states. “Don’t do it. The views are spectacular from the established viewpoints, on the safe side of the fence.”
Attempts to reach relatives of Hoang were unsuccessful. State police said he was from West Covina, a city 19 miles east of L.A.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
