A pair of New York City police officers have been hailed as heroes after saving the life of a potential Brooklyn Bridge jumper.
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The incident happened on Saturday, Nov. 23, just before 3:30 p.m. local time, the New York Post reports. Calls came in that the man had climbed around the outside part of the bridge near the Brooklyn side.
When police officers in the Emergency Service Unit (ESU) arrived on the scene, they proceeded to talk to the jumper. The man stated he was going to kill himself by leaping from the Brooklyn Bridge.
While speaking to the officers, he also gave them the middle finger. He was then seen walking on one of the bridge’s beams as though he was balancing on a plank.
The man was also seen hanging from underneath the Brooklyn Bridge by his hands. He was more than 100 feet over the East River. Witnesses say he stayed in that position for at least 20 seconds.
After the potential jumper got back on the Brooklyn Bridge, the police officers made their move, with an ESU officer grabbing the man’s hand by reaching across the beam. The other ESU officer was able to grab the man from behind and lead him off the bridge.
The incident lasted for more than an hour, coming to an end just before 4:30 p.m.
After being placed in police custody, the man was taken to Bellevue Hospital for psychological evaluation.
Multiple Incidents Have Happened on the Brooklyn Bridge This Year
The latest jumper incident on the Brooklyn Bridge occurred just six months after a 24-year-old man miraculously survived jumping 120 feet from the famous bridge.
The New York Post reported that the incident happened on May 18 at approximately 1:30 p.m. Although the fall is deadly for most people, the man was discovered by the NYPD Harbor Unit, still conscious.
Law enforcement officials revealed that the man was brought to Pier 16 in Manhattan and taken by EMS to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition.
Two months before that jump, police officers saved a 25-year-old woman from jumping off the bridge.
“Please don’t do this,” NYPD Lt. Hak Kim told the woman. “We got you. We’re gonna help you out, please.”
“Don’t jump. Don’t jump,” Kim added. “It’s not worth it. We care about you.”
The officers were able to convince the woman to come down. Kim was there with open arms. “We got you, okay,” he said.
She was taken to a nearby hospital for psychological evaluation.