One man is dead and another in critical condition after a car drove off the Santa Cruz Wharf on Saturday night.
Witnesses say a white Cadillac sedan drove through the wooden railings of the wharf around 8:20 p.m., with both front windows open. The car drove through the parking lot, but jumped a parking block before going driving through the railing and plunging 20 feet into the water. "We thought he was parking, but he kept going," witness Tyler Groch told the Santa Cruz Sentinel. Groch said he saw a car crash that may have led to the car going over the wharf, and also said the car almost hit a family of four before going into the water.
Driver brought to surface by lifeguards at 8:55 pm. Paddled to beach. Unclear condition. pic.twitter.com/LSOMc4lcjQ
— Stephen Baxter (@sbaxter_sc) October 18, 2015
Lifeguards were able to pull two men out of the water by 9 p.m. and transport both to a local hospital. ABC 7 news reports that one of the men died and the other remains in critical condition. The car was pulled out of the water around 11:15 p.m., later that night, and the cause of the incident remains under investigation.
Driver apparently jumped an 8-inch wood parking block then tore through ~4 ft white wood fence and plunged off wharf pic.twitter.com/znPvdtyPKd
— Stephen Baxter (@sbaxter_sc) October 18, 2015
Rescue crews pull car out of water after 2 men drove off #SantaCruz wharf. Injuries unknown. http://t.co/kzIqBCkWCn
https://t.co/txcxQ2PtUi
— ABC7 News (@abc7newsBayArea) October 18, 2015
Firefighters lifted a white 4-door Cadillac out of the ocean off #santacruz wharf ~11:15pm pic.twitter.com/HfmQFnCeL1
— Stephen Baxter (@sbaxter_sc) October 18, 2015
Cadillac's roof caved in, windshield smashed in #santacruz wharf crash Sat. night. Pic: Mara Torres pic.twitter.com/m24qZVW0dk
— Stephen Baxter (@sbaxter_sc) October 18, 2015