A Florida surfer is fighting for his life after a horrific wipeout in which he smashed his head on the piling of a pier, officials and loved ones said.
Jorge Alvarado, 49, is currently on life support after he suffered a serious head injury Friday morning at Daytona Beach.
Alvarado was out on the water when it’s believed he struck a sandbar before he crashed into the Sunglow Pier piling around 9 a.m., Volusia County Beach Safety Ocean Rescue said, according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
A bystander witnessed him “strike a piling with his head before going under in an unguarded area,” county ocean rescue director Tamra Malphurs told the outlet. It took several minutes to free him before he was rushed to the hospital.
“There were a few people right on scene who got to him and bravely went out there to get him out and as soon as they got him out Volusia County was here and went to work right away,” Alvarado’s pal Chis Chibbaro told WKMG.
His other friend, Brian Holmes, said Alvarado’s accident is incredibly rare.
“We’ve all taken hundreds of falls like this and some of us have had close calls, rubbing into the bottom a few times but you really have to fall just right to have an injury like this,” Holmes told the station.
Holmes described him as a “jovial spirit” who makes friends quickly and is like a father or uncle to younger surfers.
The surfer’s friends started a fundraiser that has raised more than $13,000 so far.
“Jorge is loved by so many people and we want to make sure as a community that we take care of him and his family during this difficult time,” the GoFundMe post states.