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A 17-year-old boy suffered severe injuries and is now forced to use a walker after jumping off a notorious San Diego cliff.

The boy, whose name was not given, suffered six compression fractures to his vertebrae and had to get nine stitches in his foot after hitting the rocks while cliff diving at Sunset Cliffs.

'I slammed against the rock, and I felt like paralyzed, and I couldn’t move,' he told Fox 5 San Diego.

'My lungs were burning, my ribs were burning, my spine. It was the weirdest feeling; it was just burning.'

Bystanders rushed into the water to keep the teen afloat until lifeguards and firefighters used a technical rope system to pull his injured body out.

The teen believes if he had 'slipped a little bit more' that he would have 'landed straight on that slab and not in the water.'

'I would probably be paralyzed if not dead,' he told the outlet.

The boy now has to use a walker to get around as he recovers. He is hoping his injuries will deter other teens from making the same jump.

The boy, who was not identified, suffered six compression fractures to his vertebrae and had to get nine stitches in his foot

He believes he would have died if he had ‘slipped a bit more’ after hitting the rocks and bouncing into the water

However, teens are still flocking to the spot to try out the risky dare for themselves – some in hopes of looking cool on social media.

Lifeguards, however, remind people that it is illegal to jump off anything over five feet tall under city ordinance.

They also warn the teens that there could be hidden rocks under the surface that they cannot see from above and changing tides could be dangerous.

A now-viral video showed the moment the 17-year-old was injured on Sunday.

He was recorded leaping off the rock, then hitting its side before falling into the water.

The video shows a large crowd watching the boy as he made contact with the cliff face.

Another person can be seen jumping in to assist him shortly after he entered the water.

Emergency services were called to Sunset Cliffs around 4.27pm. The teenager was pulled from the water and taken to hospital at 5.16pm.

Firefighters and lifeguards had to use a technical rope system to get the teen out

The teen hopes other youngsters will avoid making the mistake he made, however, teenagers continue to show up to do the risky dare

According to a report by OB Rag, from 2005 through 2017, there were 19 deaths and 49 people seriously injured at Sunset Cliffs.

Despite the law and multiple accidents, the location remains a frequent diving spot for locals and visitors.