Would-be jumper closes down Orange County freeway for two hours
A man threatening to jump off an overpass Friday night prompted authorities to close down the 55 Freeway in Orange in both directions for about two hours.
The man was reported at 8:20 p.m. standing on a freeway sign attached to the Meats Avenue overcrossing, perched above the traffic moving rapidly below.
The California Highway Patrol quickly arrived and asked the man to return to a safe location.
“He was out there and wasn’t cooperating with the units to get down so they closed both sides of the freeway,” said a dispatcher, who declined to give her name.
Officers closed the northbound side at 8:25 p.m. and the southbound side moments later, according to the CHP incident log.
Eventually, the man jumped, but it was into an airbag deployed onto the road below, the dispatcher said.
Officers took the man into custody and then to a hospital for treatment. Word on his condition was not available Friday night.
Both sides of the freeways were open again by about 10:30 p.m.
Twitter: @howardblume
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