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Man dies after falling 30 feet from cliff at Pirate’s Cove

By Hannah Fry
 and Jeremiah Dobruck
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The Orange County Coroner’s office has identified a man who fell to his death from a cliff in Newport Beach as 51-year-old Lakewood resident David Kirkendall.

Kirkendall suffered traumatic injuries early Tuesday after falling about 30 feet from a bluff at Corona del Mar State Beach, according to authorities.

Kirkendall was taking pictures with his wife above Pirate’s Cove shortly before 4:30 a.m. when he lost his footing, said Newport Beach Fire Battalion Chief Justin Carr.

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Rescue crews took Kirkendall by boat into Newport Harbor, where paramedics took over and drove him to Mission Hospital.

At the hospital, Kirkendall died from his injuries at 5:52 a.m., according to the coroner’s office.

Hannah Fry

Hannah Fry covers breaking news for the Los Angeles Times. She most recently covered Orange County for The Times and has written extensively about criminal trials, housing, politics and government. In 2020, Fry was part of the team that was a Pulitzer finalist for its coverage of a boat fire that killed 34 people off the coast of Santa Barbara. Fry came to The Times from the Daily Pilot, where she covered coastal cities, education and crime. An Orange County native, Fry started her career as an intern at the Orange County Register.

Jeremiah Dobruck

Jeremiah Dobruck was a public safety reporter for the Daily Pilot. He first came to the Pilot as an editorial intern in 2009. After a handful of other media-related jobs, he was hired full-time at the Pilot as a copy editor in 2012. He holds a bachelor’s in journalism from Cal State Fullerton. He left the Daily Pilot in 2016.

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