Newport Beach : Man Saved After Fall From Newport Pier
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A police Explorer Scout and a Costa Mesa man were being credited Friday with saving a man who fell into the ocean off the Newport Pier.
Ronald Shofner, 24, of Knoxville, Tenn., apparently tripped over a low railing on the pier and fell into the water shortly before 10 p.m. Thursday, according to Newport Beach police spokesman Tom Little.
Seeing Shofner fall, Gene Burgett of Costa Mesa shed a Halloween costume he was wearing and dove in after him while others on the pier went to summon help, Little said.
Scott Wiese, 19, the captain of the department’s Explorer post, was on patrol nearby with a regular officer and, arriving at the pier, also dove into the ocean. Wiese, a former lifeguard, helped keep Shofner afloat and away from the pier pilings until lifeguards could pull all three men from the water.
Shofner was taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, where he was reported in stable condition.
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