Man climbs down from electrical power structure after almost 10 hours
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - After nearly 10 hours, the man who climbed to the top of a power line structure on N. Academy Blvd. and Galley Rd. finally came down just after 1 a.m. Tuesday.
Police arrived at the scene just at 4 p.m. the day before. They say when crowds started to gather, the man got agitated and climbed farther up the structure.
Police haven't identified that man yet, but they do know he acted out because of family problems. They say they have no knowledge this had anything to do with the ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Police say that man will now be taken to the hospital for a mental evaluation. He could potentially face misdemeanor trespassing charges.
Two juveniles at the scene may also be facing charges for failure to disperse and obstruction of a peace officer.
"They were yelling at him and distracting him from talking with our negotiators," says Colorado Springs Police Sergeant Joe Zahrobsky. "We did have a group that came over - across from behind me - and they began interfering and refusing to move - so we did make two arrests."
Aside from that incident, police say the crowd was supportive of the man and police and their mission to get him down safely.
"I just saw a community come together," says Ellijah Chavez, who witnessed the incident. "We were all chanting 'you are loved, you are loved'. But he was climbing and swinging. It was a scary sight to see."
Police tell us they did deploy a crane after the man asked for a drink of water. CSPD's Crisis Intervention Team was also on the scene trying to get him to come down. Utilities crews did de-energize the power structure after the man climbed it. After the man climbed down, he was seen standing and talking with police, so it doesn't appear he sustained any serious injuries.
