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One of three Carmel High School boys injured in a cliff crash that killed two of their surfing buddies left the hospital Friday, while the survivors' families expressed both relief and anguish over the Highway 1 accident that wrenched the community this week.
Kenny Schneider, 15, was released from Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, while the other two injured boys, Colin Cowsill, 17, and Dane Anderson, 17, "are still recovering," the three boys' parents said in a joint statement.
They were hurt Tuesday when the truck they were riding in went off a cliff south of Big Sur and plunged 450 feet to the beach below, killing the driver, Alexander Robbins, 16, and Ryan Field, 17. The boys were returning home from a surfing trip at Sand Dollar Beach. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
Dane Anderson's father, Damon, said the families composed a written statement to "make sure the truth is out there" about what happened after the truck left the roadway and fell to the base of the cliff and two of the boys clambered up the cliff to get help.
In the statement, the families said they are "tremendously thankful the three boys are still alive," but "deeply sorry for the loss of the other two boys."
"We are grieving alongside of the families and know that the community is providing tremendous support for them," the statement said. "These boys and their beautiful spirits will always be remembered."
Damon Anderson said his son is still in the hospital, recovering from two compression spine fractures, severe cuts and multiple bruises and scrapes.
"He should recover well," Anderson said, before reading the families' statement from the hospital Friday evening. He said the statement, which didn't go into what occurred in the truck before it left the highway, was based on the three boys' account.
According to the statement: The three survivors were in the rear seat of the Ford 350 King Cab truck. The roof was already smashed in when the truck landed upside down on the beach. The truck was under water until the waves receded. Cowsill's seat belt had broken, and he was thrown free near the bottom.
As the water receded, Dane Anderson managed to unhook his seat belt and pulled Schneider from the truck. Cowsill was lying motionless nearby. Anderson asked Schneider to climb with him for help. Anderson started climbing, despite his "intense back pain."
"Kenny stayed behind and tried to help the two boys stuck in the front of the truck," the statement said. "The truck was severely smashed and the door would not open."
Schneider went back to the shore "promising to return with help" and tried to help Cowsill. His friend couldn't get up, so Schneider began climbing after Anderson.
The two boys made it to the highway and flagged down a Canadian couple. The man was a lifeguard and went down the cliff to help. The woman stayed with Anderson and Schneider "and comforted them and helped them flag down another car."
The families praised the motorists who helped and the rescue workers and hospital personnel who treated their sons. They also thanked "the community for (its) tremendous outpouring of love and support."
"The students of Carmel High and Carmel Middle School, the whole surfing community, all of our friends and family, and the wider community have been a tremendous source of encouragement and love," their statement said.
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