Two Surfers Were Rescued in Stormy Conditions in Santa Cruz.
Two surfers were pulled from the water at the Hook in Santa Cruz earlier this month. Though one was able to leave the water under their own power, the other was left with a head injury and an uncertain fate. Since then, it has come to light that he died a few days later.
On Wednesday, November 5, rescuers spotted two surfers struggling due to stormy conditions that had created disorganized surf, coupled with a high tide. The troubled water made retrieving one of the victims difficult for rescue crews. They eventually found him on the rocky shoreline, unconscious and having suffered head trauma.
“The victim was removed from the water to a rescue watercraft and then moved over to Harbor Patrol and then transported back to the harbor,” said Santa Cruz County Central Fire District Division Chief Patrick Winters. “They performed CPR during that transport and then he was handed off to Santa Cruz City paramedics as well as AMR.”
As the Santa Cruz Sentinel reports, the second victim was 19-year-old Nathaniel John Ramirez. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office and Coroner Unit spokesperson Zach West told the Sentinel Thursday that Ramirez was pronounced dead at nearby Dignity Health Dominican Hospital, two days after being pulled from the surf.
The official cause of death is not yet available.
