A father and son from Rancho Cordova, California were rescued after their car crashed and fell 500 feet off a cliff in Mariposa County, according to CBS San Francisco. The two men apparently ran into some good luck during the terrifying incident as Mariposa Country Sheriff Jeremey Briese credited the "quick response" of a Cal Fire firefighter who just happened to be passing by in their moment of peril.
The California Highway Patrol reported that Scott Anderson, 51, and his 11-year-old son were traveling in the rain when he lost control of his Toyota while making a turn. The car flipped multiple times before tumbling into a ditch and out of sight.
"The Cal Fire employee noticed signs of possibly a traffic accident or this delineator down," said the sheriff. "They're brave actions and their skills were able to find this vehicle."
A small army of search and rescue teams worked for four hours in the rain and steep terrain to pull the two up the cliff. "The area that this car went off is an extremely steep canyon and it's an extremely rural area of the county," Briese explained. "I know the ropes they were using were 600-foot ropes, and once they reached the patients, they had about 100 feet left."
Anderson and his son suffered moderate injuries and authorities said they were still in nearby hospitals as of early morning Wednesday, April 13. Investigators also said they were both wearing seatbelts and alcohol and drugs were not factors in the crash.