South Carolina Paraglider, 52, Dies in Crash at Torrey Pines Port

Updated at 8:10 a.m. May 13, 2012

The woman killed in a paragliding crash at Torrey Pines was identified Sunday as Pamela Hargett of Inman, SC. She died in the accident shortly after noon
Saturday.

Her boyfriend, also paragliding, saw Hargett hit the cliffs and called
911, according to the county Medical Examiner’s Office, which posted this information:

The decedent was a 52-year-old single Caucasian female who resided in South Carolina. On 05/12/12, the decedent was paragliding along the Torrey Pines cliffs when she apparently lost control and crashed into the side of the cliffs. Her boyfriend witnessed the incident and called 911. Emergency personnel responded and initiated advanced cardiac life support. She failed to respond and her death was pronounced at the scene. San Diego Fire Helicopter 2 assisted with the recovery and transported her to Scripps La Jolla Hospital. The examination is tentatively scheduled for 05/13/12.

The crash, which left the paraglider suspended on an ocean-front cliff,
occurred about a quarter-mile south of the Torrey Pines Gliderport, a well-
known takeoff point where the ocean breeze and cliff provide an updraft.

Original story:

A hang glider pilot died Saturday on the cliffs of Torrey Pines as San Diego lifeguards rappelled down the rocky face to rescue her from her crashed hang glider.

The downed glider, a 52-year-old woman, was reported about 12:30 p.m. below the Torrey Pines Gliderport, according to lifeguard Lt. Nick Lerma.

The unlicensed aircraft came to rest suspended on a cliff above Black's Beach, he said.

Lifeguards rappelled down the cliff and secured the unconscious pilot, Lerma said. A helicopter hoisted the woman to the top of the cliffs where she was pronounced dead, he said.

The pilot’s name was not released pending notification of her family.

—City News Service