Woman Dies After 40-Ft Fall at Oregon Coast Attraction

Published 06/04/26 at 1:55 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Depoe Bay, Oregon) – One of the Oregon coast's most popular attractions can also be among its most dangerous – yet it's perfectly safe if you stay behind the fences. (Photo DBFD)

Exactly why one individual went beyond the fences is not yet known, but it resulted in a tragic fall and outcome.

Depoe Bay Fire District (DBFD) crews were dispatched at about 12:25 p.m. on Wednesday, June 3 to Devil’s Punchbowl State Natural Area after reports that a woman had fallen onto the rocks below the cliff.

According to the district, the victim later died from her injuries.

“Upon arrival, first-responding units were directed to the victim’s location on the rocks below the park’s iconic collapsed sea cave,” DBFD said. “Crews quickly assessed the situation to determine the safest and most effective course of action. Recognizing the victim had sustained critical injuries, firefighters rappelled down to her and initiated advanced life support care.”

This is a drop of some 40 – 50 feet, depending where you are on the rocky rim.

Because of the terrain and the severity of the woman’s condition, the Lincoln County Technical Rescue Team and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter were requested. After further evaluation, responders determined that a hoist extraction offered the safest and fastest way to remove her from the rocks.

The Coast Guard helicopter arrived, hoisted the victim once she was stabilized, and landed in the Devil’s Punchbowl parking lot. Two firefighter-paramedics continued providing critical care during the flight to a trauma center in the Willamette Valley. Despite the coordinated response, the woman died after arriving at the hospital.

The fire district expressed condolences to the victim’s family and urged visitors to use caution near coastal cliffs.

“When visiting these areas we ask that you use extreme caution to avoid being too close to the safety barriers and do not enter areas that are fenced off. This is for your safety and ours,” the district said.

Assisting agencies included North Lincoln Fire & Rescue, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Oregon State Police, Pacific West Ambulance, Oregon State Parks, the Lincoln County Technical Rescue Team, and the United States Coast Guard.

Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff have encountered some hair-raising moves along that rocky form, including one set of photographs from 2013. In them, a group of three young men wandered well over the fenced area and up to the ledges of the sandstone cliffs.

Aside from the obvious other dangers, this material is far less stable than basalt, which many north Oregon coastal cliff areas are made from. Not the Devil's Punchbowl, however.

Ironically, the group was at times more preoccupied with being photographed than their own safety.

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