Stuck BASE Jumper To Be Billed For Placer County Rescue

AUBURN (CBS13) -- A man who had to be rescued after a failed attempt at a BASE jump from the Foresthill Bridge in Placer County may have to pay up.

The Auburn Journal says 34-year-old Nicholas Frey will have to fork over $2,000 for rescue efforts made to pluck him from a tree 60 feet up last week.

That's the amount the Placer County Sheriff's Department estimates it cost for its helicopter, pilot and other rescuers who assisted in bringing Frey to safety.

Frey attempted the jump late on the night of Oct. 12 but got stuck in a tree about 60 feet from the ground. He eventually used his mobile phone to call 9-1-1.

Both CalFire and the Placer County Sheriff's Department say this was the one of toughest rescues they've ever been involved in.

"It's a dark canyon at night, which it has its own inherent problems. In addition to that you've got an individual who is precariously hung in a tree," said CalFire Battalion Chief Jim Mathias. "You don't know how secure he is and the roto-wash from the helicopter displacing the air itself in conjunction with that air meeting with the parachute makes it a very difficult rescue."

Once he was rescued, Frey was quickly put in a patrol car and taken to jail for violating the county ordinance prohibiting jumping from the bridge.

"When our rescue specialist goes down from the helicopter, he is on a line, and it's a very technical rescue, so it's definitely putting other peoples' lives at risk," said sheriff's Lt. Mark Reed.

Frey was booked into the Placer County Jail and bailed himself out.

He declined to comment when questioned by CBS13's Ben Sosenko as Frey left the jail.