US Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew rescues 3 people near Muir Beach
A screenshot from video released showing Saturday night's US Coast Guard rescue near Muir Beach in Marin County.
MARIN COUNTY, Calif. - The US Coast Guard Sector San Francisco and Southern Marin Fire Protection District successfully rescued five people Saturday evening from a cliffside near Muir Beach.
Crews from the Southern Marin Fire Protection District responded around 8 p.m. to the incident and located three people stranded on the face of a cliff, and an additional two stranded near the top in view of Muir Beach.
At 8:17 p.m., the fire agency contacted the Coast Guard to request assistance with the rescue operation. After watchstanders briefed the Coast Guard Air Station operations center, a MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew launched and was on scene by 9 p.m.
By this time, Southern Marin County Fire Battalion 3 advised the Coast Guard that crews on the ground had rescued the two people at the top of the cliff.
Video released Sunday shows the Dolphin helicopter crew hoisting the remaining three stranded people from the cliff.
All three people were transported to Air Station San Francisco.
"Cliff operations are inherently risky for both ground parties and air crew, and are significantly higher risk during nighttime," said Lt. Cmdr. Eric Schwartz, the Air Station San Francisco Dolphin aircraft commander. "We were glad the conditions allowed us to save three lives alongside our partner agencies."
There were no reported injuries.