San Diego man Joshua Burwell Distracted by Electronic Device, Falls to Death

A man who fell 60 feet to his death off a cliff while using an electronic device on Christmas Day has been identified.

Joshua M Burwell, 33, from Sheridan, Indiana, was strolling along Sunset Cliffs in San Diego when he tumbled over the edge, NBC San Diego reported. 

He is thought to have been looking at this phone or a camera when he fell. 

His family confirmed his identity on Facebook and paid tribute to him. 

Sharyle Burwell, his mother, said: 'Hug your kids and always tell them you love them. Glad my last words to Josh were "love you"! 

She added: 'Nothing will lessen this pain except time. Treat each other with love and kindness. You never know how quickly things can change. Thank you all for the many kind words and the many prayers! They are much appreciated and have given me comfort. Much love, Sharyle.'

Joey Burwell also said: 'This is going to take a long time to get over, if we ever do.'

He also wrote a fitting tribute to him on social media: 'You will always be loved by your family and friends.

'You will forever hold a special place in my heart. Loving son, loving brother, loving father. Gone way to soon, now sitting at the side of God. We have always loved you.'

Bill Bender with San Diego Lifeguards at Sunset Cliffs told NBC San Diego they believe Burwell was either using a camera or cellphone. He said neither had yet been found. 

Bender added: 'Witnesses stated seeing someone distracted by an electronic device and he just fell over the edge. 

'(He) wasn't watching where he was walking, he was looking down at the device in his hands.' 

In an attempt to rescue the man, three Good Samaritans safely found a way down the rocks and administered CPR. 

'They acted quickly, they found a way to get down the cliff,' Bender told the NBC affiliate station.

'They put themselves at jeopardy...They administered CPR to the person in attempt to save a life.' 

One of the men said he was just trying to be a good neighbor by going out and trying to save the man, but he didn't want to speak on camera or be identified. 

Teenager Thor Wilink was another witness at the scene who rushed from his home located across the street to help bringing ropes and lapel gear. 

He told NBC San Diego he heard screams and someone yelling: 'Help, please God, save me.' 

'After that I heard 'does anyone have rope and a lapel', and I know because I go to Yosemite, so I grabbed that, went down to the cliffs, and started to untangle the rope,' he told the television station. 

'I only had one priority, to save the person,' 13-year-old Wilink told NBC San Diego. 'I only had one priority.' 

Fire crews arrived a few minutes later, but the man was pronounced dead by medics.

Bender said it's unclear why he was at the cliff, but it is believed that he was trying to watch the sunset.  

Bender waed that people need to be more aware of their surroundings. 

'Just like driving and using a cell phone, you don't want to be walking and using a cell phone or be distracted or anything,' Bender told NBC San Diego.