22-year-old man dies in fall from cliff at Pirate’s Cove

Officials are investigating what led a 22-year-old man to fall to his death from the bluffs above Pirate’s Cove near Avila Beach on Monday morning.

Authorities did not release the man’s identity Monday, pending notification of his family.

The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office was alerted in a phone call from a passer-by to an unresponsive person on a cliff face about 10:57 a.m. Monday.

Sheriff’s deputies and Cal Fire emergency rescue personnel responded to the scene, and an ambulance was summoned to take the patient to a nearby hospital. But when crews reached the man, he was pronounced dead at the scene and the ambulance was called off, according to sheriff’s Cmdr. Stuart MacDonald.

A coroner’s unit then responded to the cliffs and conducted a preliminary investigation, remaining there for much of the afternoon.

MacDonald said the death appears to be from an accidental fall from the parking lot area above, about 30 feet from where the man’s body was found.

MacDonald said that investigators could not rule out whether alcohol or drugs played a role in the man’s death. An autopsy has been scheduled for this week, and a toxicology report is expected to be released in four to six weeks.

Investigators have determined that the body found Monday morning is not the person reported missing after a man was seen jumping from the Pismo Beach Pier late Saturday. That man was identified Monday as 28-year old Tulare resident Marco Anthony Reyes Jr. He remained missing as of Monday evening; Pismo Beach police are seeking information from the public regarding that case.

This story was originally published March 21, 2016 at 12:36 PM with the headline "22-year-old man dies in fall from cliff at Pirate’s Cove."