June 4, 2025

Utah man seriously injured in 90-foot jump at popular Oregon waterfall

A 22-year-old man from Utah was seriously injured after jumping from the top of

Abiqua Falls

on May 18, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office has said.

The man had reportedly seen videos online of others jumping from the same cliff and attempted the jump himself, a sheriff’s office spokesperson said.

The trailhead to the waterfall is about 11 miles southeast of Scotts Mills. Instagram and YouTube are replete with videos of people jumping from the falls.

Authorities received two text-to-911 messages around 7:39 p.m. asking for help for an injured person who had jumped the 90 or so feet from the top of the falls, the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post last week.

Rescuers got the man out using an ATV and took him to a LifeFlight helicopter, which took him to a trauma center.

Sheriff’s spokesperson Sgt. Jeremy Schwab said the man was a “thrill-seeker” inspired by social media. Although he isn’t aware of other people who’ve been injured jumping off the falls, Schwab said the sheriff’s office does not condone the activity.

“It’s dangerous,” Schwab said. “We don’t want people to do it. But it’s one of those things — we can’t post somebody there.”

A March episode of the “Today” show

included a film clip of a kayaker taking the plunge

over the waterfall.


— Fedor Zarkhin is a breaking news and enterprise reporter. Do you have a story? Reach him by phone or text at 971-373-2905 or by email at


fzarkhin@oregonian.com


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