Truck goes off cliff on Maui; all 5 survive

A pickup truck with five teenagers and young adults went over a 20- to 30-foot cliff and landed upright on a remote rocky beach in southeast Maui, authorities said.

All five survived the crash yesterday morning, even though some were thrown out of the vehicle.

Police said it appeared the victims had been camping and were returning home when the pickup truck went over the cliff.

Acting fire Battalion Chief Derrick Arruda said a Fire Department helicopter, which had been battling the brush fire in West Maui, was called in to pick up a rescue crew in Kahului and drop them off at the scene.

The crash was reported at 9:56 a.m. But the area is so remote, the rescue crew wasn't able reach the scene by air until about 10:15. An engine from Hana wasn't able to get to the scene until 10:30 a.m.

One man was taken by helicopter to Maui Memorial Medical Center. Police said he is in stable condition.

The other victims, three other men and a woman, were taken by ambulance to the hospital with broken bones, cuts and scrapes, Arruda said.

Arruda said three people were riding in the back of the Ford Ranger pickup when it went over the cliff and the other two were in the cab.

The truck landed wheels down and apparently did not flip over, he said.