In a dramatic rescue operation, a man was airlifted to safety after spending several days trapped in a crevasse on a rocky cliff in San Diego. The unidentified man had become stuck from the waist down inside a narrow 12 to 18-inch hole. The rescue effort, which lasted for several hours, had to be temporarily halted overnight due to the rising tide.

The incident began when two teenagers passing by the area near Orchard Street and Cable Street heard the man's cries for help at around 3:40 p.m. on Thursday. They immediately called 911, prompting the San Diego Fire Department (SDFD) to respond to the scene. The SDFD's technical rescue team, along with Chula Vista Fire Department Trench Rescue Technicians, worked tirelessly to assist the man. However, as the tide began to rise, they were forced to suspend operations for the night.

During the night, the trapped man was provided with electrolytes, hot packs, and blankets to keep him warm. In the early hours of the next morning, a specialized team of volunteer rescuers from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, known for their expertise in cave rescues, arrived at approximately 4:40 a.m. The man appeared to be uninjured, but the narrow gap in which he was trapped made the rescue operation extremely challenging.

The rescue efforts were further complicated by intermittent rain, gusty winds, and bursts of lightning and thunder. Nevertheless, the teams resumed their operations at 9 a.m. and it took them an additional two hours to successfully extract the man from the crevasse. He was then placed in a Stokes basket, airlifted from the scene, and transferred to a stretcher before being transported via ambulance to a nearby hospital.

"Drowning was a concern for us last night," stated Dan Eddy, the SDFD's deputy chief of operations. He expressed relief that the tides had not reached a level that posed a threat to the trapped man. The SDFD acknowledged that they were unsure how the man ended up in the hole or the exact duration of his ordeal. While some reports suggested that he had deliberately entered the cave to seek shelter, these claims could not be verified.

Further details emerged regarding the circumstances leading to the man's entrapment. It was revealed that he had attempted to construct a tunnel shelter underneath a riprap tunnel, but his plan had failed. As he was tunneling, he slipped and became wedged beneath the rock at the bottom of the tunnel, approximately 12-15 feet down in the hillside.

Rescuers initially tried to free the man but were impeded by the rising tide. They then resorted to suspending the mission overnight. Throughout the night, rescuers took turns monitoring the trapped hiker, providing him with blankets, an IV bag, Gatorade, and hot packs. The man also slipped in and out of consciousness multiple times.

The rescue operation resumed at 9 a.m. the following day, with a team of volunteer cave rescue specialists from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department arriving to assist. They dismantled parts of the concrete to gain access to the trapped man. Two of the smallest first responders were lowered into the hole to drill small holes and set micro blasts to remove the surrounding rocks.

According to the SDFD, the man expressed relief as the rescuers worked to remove the rocks pinning his legs. Finally, at 11 a.m., he was freed from the crevasse and airlifted to a nearby road using a Stokes basket. From there, he was transferred to a stretcher and promptly taken to the hospital. Fortunately, the man is reported to be in stable condition, although he sustained injuries to his abdomen and legs. He was also dehydrated after being trapped for nearly 20 hours.