The California Highway Patrol is blaming a possible ejection for why there was a delay in finding the victim in a crash off a 300-foot cliff in Santa Cruz last week.
CBS Local in San Francisco reported on its website that on Sunday, August 25th at approximately 3:00 p.m. Monterey County Sheriff’s Department deputies recovered a vehicle that had drove off a cliff on Highway 1 near Big Sur.
A spokesperson for the CHP told reporters that the body of a woman was recovered from the ocean near the area where a burgundy 2015 Honda Civic reportedly went off the road.
The vehicle is registered to Kristen Kendall, who was reported missing by her family in Capitola earlier in the week.
So far officials have not determined if the body of the woman is that of Kendall who worked as a medical assistant in San Jose.
Prior to finding the body, Monterey County Sheriff’s deputies used a drone to locate the wreckage of the vehicle. The Honda was recovered a couple of hours later.
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According to Officer Justin Roberts of the California Highway Patrol, there was no evidence of blood or any other sign of injury found inside the crashed vehicle. Because of this, Officer Roberts told CBS that it is believed that the victim in the crash was ejected from the vehicle as it tumbled over the cliff. It took some time before emergency crews were able to locate the vehicle.
The cause of the crash is still currently under investigation.
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