Injured Paraglider Rescued Near Gibraltar
Update by the edhat staff
An injured paraglider was rescued near Gibraltar Road on Thursday afternoon.
At 2:15 p.m., Santa Barbara County and City firefighter paramedics, Search & Rescue, and an Air Support Helicopter responded to the scene.
A 29-year-old male paraglider crashed approximately 300 feet below the launch site off Gibraltar Road.
Firefighter paramedics determined the victim suffered traumatic injuries and a helicopter hoist operation was initiated.
The paraglider was flown to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. His condition is unclear at this time.
"Great collaboration between County & City Fire, Search and Rescue, and Sheriffs department," said County Fire Captain Scott Safechuck.
ParagliderDown: Gibraltar Rd. SB. Update: Patient Hoist Rescued by SBC ASU Copt. 4 and transported to SBCH with Fire Medics on board. Resources returning available. Great collaboration between County & City Fire, Search and Rescue, and Sheriffs department. pic.twitter.com/r3EetuZcEu
— Scott Safechuck (@SBCFireInfo) December 1, 2022
By Tagdes
County Fire along with Copter 4 responding to Gibraltar for a medical emergency.
22 Comments
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Dec 02, 2022 02:19 PM2 crashes in a short amount of time. Is it inexperience? Fault equipment? Just a fluke/coincidence? Scary stuff! I will never forget the year on Thanksgiving when a local vet was riding tandem with his teenaged daughter and he wasn't securely strapped in and fell to his death. This is so crazy dangerous!
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Dec 01, 2022 03:45 PMGreat report, thank you tagdes!!
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Dec 03, 2022 09:09 AMYes, thanks.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:40 PMCopters' gone, AMR with patient to Cottage.
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Dec 01, 2022 04:56 PMCouldn't hear copter come over but sounds like they may have sent the copter to Cottage in stead of AMR after the medics update to patients condition.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:34 PM29 year old male 300' down from launch site.
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Dec 01, 2022 05:04 PMHope he'll be okay.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:33 PMYeah if I was a paraglider I'd probably pay $85 a year for the insurance for CalStar.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:48 PMCalstar doesn't have winches.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:28 PMThat would be near Tunnel and Rock Garden Trails.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:26 PMSomeone was paragliding in this weather?
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Dec 03, 2022 01:48 PMEastbeach - Thank you for your usual level-headed and informative commentary.
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Dec 03, 2022 01:14 PMAnd long-range seabirds like albatrosses use a different technique to fly across vast expanses of ocean - it's called "dynamic soaring". Too complicated to describe but you can Google it. Radio controlled glider enthusiasts use the same technique to fly unpowered gliders at 100's of MPH. This one hit 548 mph last year:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eFD_Wj6dhk
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Dec 03, 2022 01:03 PMParagliders, hangliders, full-scale gliders, radio-controlled model gliders, and birds use two kinds of lift ... thermals and slope lift. Slope lift occurs when wind flows against cliffs, hills, mountains, etc. and is forced upwards. If you see a paraglider flying back-and-forth across a ridge, they are using slope lift.
On days before a storm, we often get southerly winds which create slope lift on the south side of our mountains. On days after a storm, we typically get north "clearing winds" which creates slope lift on the north side of our mountains. The day the paraglider was hurt, our storm was approaching so a possibility for slope lift on southern slopes existed.
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Dec 03, 2022 10:47 AMYes, for mild thermals, but they were questioning the weather then and if one is a beginner in this heavy cloudy day you'd best just soar through like butter. You don't want thermal turbulence or strong winds and shouldn't have any trouble staying below 18 mph.
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Dec 03, 2022 08:56 AMI should say I don't know much, not that I don't know. A family member quit gliding after their hang gliding partner dislocated his shoulder for the 2nd time. Nice to quit while one is ahead.
I read, I think on noozhawk, that this injury was to the glider's pelvis. All best wishes to him!
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Dec 03, 2022 08:52 AMI don't know about paragliding, but I too thought this was bad weather for it. Are there thermal highs when it's "cold" in our area?
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Dec 02, 2022 11:46 AMTagdes, You want thermals. That is one of the ways to get lift in an unpowered air vehicle like this.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:38 PMIt's a good day for it, nice heavy air and no thermals as long as it isn't raining.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:26 PMLooks like a hoist rescue over Mission Crags.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:23 PMIt's a paraglider down with traumatic injuries.
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Dec 01, 2022 03:20 PM2 County and 1 City Engines. Copter initially off of Gibraltar Rd. above Rattlesnake Canyon Park. Now circling over westerly loops.