Who would have thought that the first U.S. Coast Guard helicopter rescue on the Oregon Coast for 2024 would be that of a dog. That’s what happened New Year’s Day at Ecola State Park near Cannon Beach on the North Coast. A three-year old Golden Retriever named Leo fell down a nearly vertical 300-foot hill and local SAR teams felt the descent to the isolated beach was too difficult for them. They called in the Coast Guard and a helicopter crew from Warrenton responded to help hoist the pet off the beach and to the awaiting arms of its owners from Forest Grove at a nearby parking lot. Leo was taken to an emergency veterinary clinic at Beaverton and found to have a broken jaw, two teeth missing, a bruised body and air in his chest cavity. Leo’s owners have set up a GoFundMe account to help with the $10,000 in medical expenses.
