Teen who bounced off rocks in viral California cliff jumping video details his injuries: My lungs were burning

The boneheaded teen who jumped off San Diego’s famous Sunset Cliffs in a viral stunt detailed his brutal injuries.The 17-year-old boy, whose has not been identified, told Fox 5 he currently can’t walk without the use of a walker after the terrifying moment he hit the rocks.“I slammed against the rock and I felt like paralyzed, and I couldn’t move,” he said.“My lungs were burning, my ribs were burning, my spine, it was the weirdest feeling it was just burning,” he added.The teen suffered six compression fractures to his vertebrae and required nine stitches in his foot but said he did not need surgery.Even with the pain, he reminisced on how lucky he still is.“If I slipped a little bit more and I landed straight on that slab and not in the water, I would probably be paralyzed if not dead,” he said.The jump’s video footage, captured from two different angles, shows the 17-year-old making a run before leaping off the ledge at San Diego’s famous Sunset Cliffs, a location well-known for illegal cliff diving.

One video appears to show he hadn’t fully committed to the jump before takeoff, with his feet continuing a running motion after becoming airborne.The sloping sand beneath his feet may also have caught him off guard at takeoff.Instead of a smooth dive, he slams onto the edge of the rocks before bouncing into the water.

Authorities said he was eventually rescued from the water and taken to a hospital.Cliff-jumping is illegal under city municipal code, which prohibits jumping or diving into the Pacific Ocean or Mission Bay from any natural or human-made point connected to land that is more than five feet above the water.California's top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.

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