Surfer knocked unconscious at The Hook in Santa Cruz, rushed to hospital

Central Fire rescue swimmer Forrest Gleitsman is pummeled by a wave in heavy surf south of st Avenue Wednesday morning while trying to help surfers in distress Shmuel Thaler Santa Cruz Sentinel Waves crash over the Santa Cruz Harbor Jetty Wednesday morning Shmuel Thaler Santa Cruz Sentinel An AMR ambulance transports an injured surfer after he was pulled from the surf near The Hook on Santa Cruz s Eastside Wednesday Shmuel Thaler Santa Cruz Sentinel Wet going at the intersection of Soquel and La Fonda avenues on Wednesday morning Shmuel Thaler Santa Cruz Sentinel Show Caption of Central Fire rescue swimmer Forrest Gleitsman is pummeled by a wave in heavy surf south of st Avenue Wednesday morning while trying to help surfers in distress Shmuel Thaler Santa Cruz Sentinel Expand SANTA CRUZ An unconscious surfer was pulled from the water Wednesday morning near The Hook surf break on Santa Cruz s Eastside as a storm blanketed Santa Cruz County with rain high winds large waves and powerful tidal conditions Central Fire District Division Chief Patrick Winters mentioned first responders rushed to the well-known surf spot around a m after receiving reports of two surfers both men in their early s in distress as a product of the high tide and relentless swell Upon arrival rescue crews discovered that one of the surfers had made it past the line of urgent waves and appeared safe while the other was caught in the tumult No other surfers were in the water disclosed Winters Related Articles Puckish sea otters continue surf board-stealing avenues at Santa Cruz beach Good vibes led to rescue saving surfer paralyzed during accident in California waters Santa Cruz surfers Alo Slebir Wilem Banks earn wins at th annual Big Wave Challenge Awards Santa Cruz surfer s epic ride at Mavericks was largest of the season but fell short of record Santa Cruz surfer seeks world record for epic Mavericks wave ride Several rescue swimmers entered the ocean but as they paddled out the surfer eventually disappeared from view behind the cresting waves as he was pulled further down the coast toward Privates surf spot and Capitola The rescue personnel first located the surfer s board which had broken after crashing up against rocks on the shoreline and then uncovered the victim soon after He was unconscious and submerged beneath the waves with trauma to his head according to Winters The victim was extracted from the water using a rescue watercraft similar to a Jet Ski and CPR was initiated and continued as he was moved to the Santa Cruz Harbor with assistance from American Physiological Response and Santa Cruz Harbor Patrol Once he was brought ashore the surfer was transferred to paramedics who rushed him to Dignity Vitality Dominican Hospital Winters declared the man remained unconscious all throughout this process but was unaware of the victim s current condition The other surfer was able to safely paddle back to shore and exit the water using the staircase at The Hook We don t advise entry in the water in conditions that are unfavorable and pose threats stated Winters Individuals should be aware of the conditions be aware of the foreseen change in the conditions and stay out of the water when crucial high tides and swells are present The Santa Cruz coastline was included within a coastal hazard declaration issued by the National Weather Utility at a m Saturday that lasted through a m Tuesday Santa Cruz is presently included in a beach hazards comment from the weather institution that will last from Wednesday night through Thursday evening For the Beach Hazards Message a long period westerly swell will outcome in an increased peril for sneaker waves rip currents and current waves of to feet with the highest waves up to feet in favored locations the weather utility wrote in its notice The weather system also included Santa Cruz within a coastal flood advisory that began at a m Tuesday and will last through p m Saturday Other agencies involved in the rescue effort included California State Parks and the Santa Cruz Fire Department Strong wind gusts The storm this week brought with it a scant bursts of rainfall that began Tuesday and continued through Wednesday creating slippery road conditions and slowdowns across the county But as anticipated it was the wind gusts that stood out National Weather Provision meteorologist Brayden Murdock reported Ben Lomond experienced gusts as high as mph Wednesday while a peak near Los Gatos registered a gust at mph That was our main concern going into this explained Murdock We kind of knew rain especially south of the San Francisco Bay wasn t going to be as strong or that much of a hazard According to Pacific Gas and Electric s outage map as of the Sentinel s print deadline Wednesday afternoon there were four outages impacting customers throughout Santa Cruz County An outage Wednesday morning left more than customers in Pajaro Valley without power Murdock announced rainfall concentrations spread out more evenly across the county than originally anticipated leading to relatively moderate totals throughout the region as opposed to torrential downpours We saw specific nuisance flooding out there but we never saw a whole lot of rainfall in one single spot at a time Murdock announced Still precipitation levels were enough to cause specific problems Cal Fire s CZU Unit published Wednesday that as rain began to fall Tuesday night its crew members were called around p m to the scene of a single bicycle episode where a car rolled about feet down an embankment near Bear Creek Road and Sunset Ridge Road deep in the San Lorenzo Valley Firefighters managed to climb down to the car buried in branches and brush and safely walk the driver up back up the embankment where they were treated for minor injuries Volunteer firefighters with the Santa Cruz County Company Loma Prieta Unit were first at the scene and later met by several additional engines Cal Fire reminded local drivers braving wet roadways to slow down increase following distances turn headlights on check tires and wipers avoid cruise control and be individual to avoid sudden braking or sharp turns According to the county-maintained roadway advisory website as of print deadline Wednesday the storm had not forced any road closures The storm also arrived during the annual king tides period where coastal waters reach their highest and lowest points and attract flocks of visitors eager for a close-up view of tide pools However society members should keep alert Murdock cautioned as high swells will roll through Thursday increasing the likelihood of sneaker waves Because of the elevated waves there s still a good amount of wave run-up even during the low tide explained Murdock Spotty rain showers were expected to persist through Wednesday with sunshine returning as soon as Thursday and lasting through the weekend RAINFALL TOTALS Soquel inches Ben Lomond inches Boulder Creek inches