Cause Revealed in Portland Man's Death

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Blunt force trauma is what killed a Portland, Oregon man but the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office is trying to find out why he died.
 
The Sheriff’s Office says 51-year-old James Vaughn experienced that blunt force trauma to the chest.
 
Commander Bill Steven from the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office over the phone about the incident. “He had 2 collapsed lungs as well as some other damage. So we estimated that from the time of impact he probably didn't live more than a couple of minutes,” Steven says.
 
The Commander says Vaughn and his wife recently moved from Arcata to Portland. Investigators add he was moving some belongings from a storage unit from the area and intended to explore Del Norte County before settling into Oregon.
 
 
“He was headed back up to Portland to join his wife and he had stopped along the smith river to swim at one point and just view the river,” the Commander explains.
 
Investigators believe he may have been attempting to rock climb near the bar-o boys ranch area but that’s just a theory.
The Sheriff’s Office found Vaughn’s body off a steep 80-foot cliff on Sunday. The investigation is still open.
 
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Kay Recede
kiemkayr@gmail.com