NEW YORK (TNND) — New York police rescued a woman in crisis Wednesday after she climbed onto the Brooklyn Bridge and threatened to jump, according to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
Body camera video shared on social media shows members of the NYPD Emergency Services Unit climbing atop the bridge and spending nearly an hour talking with the woman as they waited for an opportunity to safely pull her back from the edge.
The woman is seen sitting on one of the bridge’s beams with her legs dangling over the side as an officer, who identified himself as Chris, calmly tries to build trust.
“I just wanna talk. What’s happening today?” he says in the video. “I wanna help you, that’s why I’m up here right now. I genuinely care.”
Chris later tells the woman, “It’s a permanent solution to a temporary problem,” adding that although he doesn’t know what she’s going through, he wants to understand.
“The strongest thing you can do right now is accept help,” he continues.
At the end of the video, the woman appears to make a sudden move toward the edge before officers grab her.
“Please, don’t do it,” Chris is heard saying as he pulls her back. “Everything’s gonna be OK. You’re not in trouble.”
Authorities received a 911 call about a person climbing the bridge around 7:38 p.m. All eastbound lanes were temporarily closed during the rescue, and the unidentified woman was taken to a hospital, according to WABC.
“The care, courage, and compassion these officers showed was just extraordinary. May God bless them,” Tisch wrote on X.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or chat online at 988lifeline.org.