ORINDA (KRON) – Officials say a missing 86-year-old man who spent the night stuck in a crashed car in a ravine was found alive by family members Thursday morning.

Contra Costa County Sheriff’s spokesperson Jimmy Lee says the man went out Wednesday afternoon to run some errands and was supposed to be back by 4 p.m. When he hadn’t returned by 6 p.m., his wife called to report him missing. Family members told police it was unlike him to just disappear.

Because of his age and some medications he was taking, the man was considered at-risk. The sheriff’s office began searching for him on the ground and with a CHP helicopter.

Even after they notified local hospitals and police agencies and entered the man’s name into a state missing persons database, Lee says there was no sign of him.

Battalion Chief Jeff Maxwell with the Moraga-Orinda Fire Protection District tells KRON 4 that they received a call around 11:15 a.m. from the 86-year-old’s family, saying they found the man alive, inside his vehicle about 50 feet off of Happy Valley Road at Bear Creek Road in Lafayette.

Maxwell notes that it appears as though the man hit several trees before plunging into the ravine.

The 86-year-old was removed from the vehicle and flown to John Muir Medical Center. He sustained injuries and is reportedly in critical condition.

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