Man rescued, airlifted 2 days after car goes off side of road near Mount Baldy

ByRob McMillan and ABC7.com staff KABC logo
Thursday, January 26, 2017
Man rescued 2 days after car goes off road near Mt. Baldy
A 25-year-old man was rescued from inside his car early Wednesday morning near Mount Baldy, two days after the vehicle veered off the side of a road, officials said.

MOUNT BALDY, Calif. (KABC) -- A 25-year-old man was rescued from inside his car early Wednesday morning near Mount Baldy, two days after the vehicle veered off the side of a road, officials said.

Los Angeles County firefighters responded about 2:55 a.m. to an area near the Barrett Stoddard Truck Trail after being informed by the California Highway Patrol that a vehicle had apparently plummeted nearly 75 feet from the road above.

Hunter Kittle spent three nights in his wrecked Toyota 4Runner before being pulled to safety. Authorities said he was driving along the windy Mount Baldy Road, heading down the mountain around 6 p.m. Sunday.

At some point, Kittle fell asleep, veered across the road down a steep hill and crashed into a tree, authorities said. But Kittle's family said he hydroplaned before veering off the road and crashing.

He was later reported missing. And it wasn't until a passing driver spotted the car on the side of the hill that authorities came to the rescue.

Kittle was found suffering from a broken leg, broken arm, a punctured lung, multiple broken ribs and skull fractures. Rescuers carried him up the mountain, after which he was airlifted to a hospital.

His family set up a GoFundMe account to receive help paying for medical expenses. If you want to donate, you can head to www.gofundme.com/wxevggrk-hunters-road-to-recovery.