An 18-year-old California man is presumed dead after he was swept into the ocean at a state park near Carmel, KPIX reported.
Braxton Cooper Stuntz, of Carmel, was hiking along the trails at Garrapata State Park Beach on Jan. 12 when he slipped and fell through a blowhole near the cliffs that overlook the Pacific Ocean, the television station reported.
The hole filled up with 14-foot waves that crashed into the area nine seconds apart, sweeping Stuntz out into the ocean, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office said.
Coast Guard spokeswoman Emily Rowan told KSBW that two friends hiking with Stuntz said they saw him give a thumbs-up after he fell, "but after a few crashes of the waves they were unable to locate him."
Stuntz’s body has not been found.
Stuntz's family started a GoFundMe page to begin a charitable foundation in his name. As of Saturday morning, more than $41,000 had been pledged.
The money will go toward the Children's Surgical Center and the tutoring of children in math and science, KION reported.
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