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Driver Dies After Car Plunges Off Highway 1 Cliff in Santa Cruz County
A 58-year-old Santa Rosa man died when his vehicle left Highway 1 near Greyhound State Beach and fell up to 500 feet into the ocean. California Highway Patrol and fire crews responded to the single-vehicle crash on May 18, 2026.
May 19, 5:16 PM·1m read1 source
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A 58-year-old man from Santa Rosa died after his car left California’s Highway 1 and fell up to 500 feet into the ocean near Greyhound State Beach. The California Highway Patrol reported that the driver was operating a black 2017 Honda Pilot when the vehicle veered off the roadway, struck a call box, and went over the cliff. The crash occurred in Santa Cruz County.
CZU units, along with lifeguards from two nearby state parks, reached the scene. Lifeguards swam to the vehicle and located the driver. A helicopter lowered a basket to lift the injured man back to the highway, where an ambulance waited. Crews performed CPR at the scene.
Authorities pronounced the driver dead at the scene from major injuries. No other occupants were in the vehicle. Officials said it remains unclear whether drugs or alcohol were factors. Captain Grant Boles of the CHP Santa Cruz Area stated that the crash should remind motorists to drive at safe speeds, avoid distractions, wear seatbelts, and never drive impaired.
Earlier this year a driver died after a similar fall of more than 500 feet near Hurricane Point in Big Sur, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.
