A man was critically injured in a 50-foot fall from a pumping station tower onto a floating pontoon in the Los Angeles River in Long Beach early Saturday, authorities said.
Firefighters using ropes and a stretcher managed to rescue Jay Gomez, 19, of Long Beach more than an hour after his fall was reported by a friend around 3 a.m., Fire Department spokesman Bob Caldon said. Gomez suffered internal injuries and several broken ribs. He was flown to Memorial Hospital.
