Cyclist Falls 50-Feet Down a Cliff in California Becoming Trapped for 6 Hours with a ‘Collapsed Lung’ and ‘Broken Bones’

A 57-year-old cyclist suffered serious injuries after plunging 50 feet down a ravine, leaving him trapped for several hours.

On Saturday, Sept. 20, Keith Leyva, 57, of Paradise Hills, San Diego, fell off a trail in Otay Lakes County Park while cycling, according to NBC San Diego and abc10News.

The experienced rider tumbled down the 50-foot cliff, sustaining a collapsed lung, multiple broken bones, and a liver laceration, leaving him immobilized at the bottom, NBC San Diego reported.

Leyva called for help for several hours before agents from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the area heard his cries and launched a rescue operation.

On Wednesday, Sept. 24, U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed in a press release that they had rescued an injured cyclist.

“On Sept. 20, Border Patrol agents working in the vicinity of Otay Lakes County Park heard cries for help originating from a canyon adjacent to the Sweetwater Dam,” the statement read. “Agents hiked into the canyon and encountered an adult male suffering from multiple serious injuries.”

They added, “Additional agents, including a Border Patrol Emergency Medical Technician, arrived on scene to render assistance and stabilize the injured subject.”

PEOPLE has reached out to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Otay Lakes County Park for further comment but did not immediately receive a response.

“The cyclist told agents he lost his footing while walking his bike along a trail on the canyon wall, falling more than 50 feet into the bottom of the canyon,” officials continued. “Unable to move for hours, he called for help until he was finally found by the Border Patrol agents.”

Leyva’s wife, Jennifer Wolschlag, told NBC San Diego she always feared her husband might have an accident despite his experience as a cyclist. She said she “panicked” upon realizing he was missing.

Wolschlag also noted to NBC San Diego that the rescue was complicated because Leyva did not stick to his planned cycling route.

After being located more than six hours after his fall, Leyva was airlifted to a nearby hospital, according to Customs and Border Protection. His wife said she “gasped” upon learning he was alive.

“There is no doubt in my mind that these agents saved this man’s life,” San Diego Sector Acting Chief Patrol Agent Jeffrey D. Stalnaker said in a statement. “I am truly thankful the agents were in the right place at the right time to make a difference.”

Leyva recalled that he feared he would be trapped in the ravine overnight and would have to pull himself out. “I couldn’t even move,” he said from the hospital, where he remains in the ICU.

Doctors have indicated that his recovery will take at least six months.