The unidentified male paces on a GW Hospital ledge. An hour and a half later, he fell and sustained serious injuries. The man, whose name and condition is not available, was on the ledge for more than four hours. Andrew Nacin/Hatchet photographer
The Hatchet has published an article with more information.
Update, 4:48 p.m. Metropolitan Police Department Lieutenant Jimmie Riley said the man partially hit the ground when falling and was breathing when they took him inside the hospital with serious injuries. The man had been hanging off the ledge, and officers set up the mat while trying to negotiate with him.
Emergency personnel stationed on the roof prepare to rappel down to rescue the potential jumper. Andrew Nacin/Hatchet photographer
Riley said the man, a black male whose name is not yet available, checked in yesterday after being injured in a car accident.
Update, 4:08 p.m. The male jumped fell onto an inflatable mat. There is no status on his condition.
End Update.
A man exited a GW Hospital window around noon today and is threatening to jump from a ledge overlooking New Hampshire Avenue.
He is wearing boxer shorts and his arms are bandaged. More than 30 D.C. police and fire department vehicles are on the scene blocking off many of the streets surrounding the hospital. Stay with The Hatchet for more news as it develops.
Hadas Gold contributed to this report.
I saw him let go of the ledge and fall. It was shortly after he picked up a water bottle someone from inside had tossed out to him. He didnt drink any water, but the bottle down on the edge, walked over to the other side of the ledge, climbed over, and held on with both hands. Then he let go with one hand…clearly there was no turning back and he dropped. His legs hit a stone panel on the side of the building and that slowed his fall a little. It looked like he fell between the inflatable pad and the building and that he also hit a small tree. Before he fell, I was talking to a police officer who told me the man had been a victim of some sort of crime and was being treated at GW hospital.
Thank you Hatchet! It was driving me crazy that I had no idea why the streets were closed, and I couldn’t find any news about it.
I feel sorry for this guy and his family. We must have compassion. So listen people, attempt suicide? This is NOT the answer. (To whatever is wrong with him). Fund psychiatric treatment options NOW! and yes, VOTE OBAMA!
Did he “Fall” as the headline states or did he “Jump.” A fall seems to connote an accident whereas this seemed like an action that was planned out.
“Seriously?”-
The man began to climb down from the ledge, briefly hanging off the ledge by his hands. He then fell onto an inflatable mat, also partially hitting the ground, an M.P.D. officer said.
He may have let go with the intent of landing on the mat, or his hand may have slipped prematurely. Either way, he did not appear to have jumped.
The Washington Post headline was “Man Decides Not to Jump Off Ledge, Then Falls.”
His name and condition are still unknown.
“Reader” clearly has no understanding of mental illness. It’s not as easy as deciding to go “get help.” There’s figuring out how to set up care for your kids, how this “help” will be funded, who will pay your bills, do your job, etc. “Help,” is always already available in the form of outpatient psychiatry programs, day partial hospitalization, and inpatient programs, but there’s this thing called the ‘real world,’ not this retarded GWland that I finally am leaving where you can drop everything and go spa for a week like Lindsey Lohan. Sure I’m for Obama, but no CIC is ever going to make getting “help easier.”
Oh, and as a fourth year med student, I want to point out that “getting help,” just doesn’t work for some people. There may be an underlying endocrine problem, some sort of neurological issue, or what not. Sometimes no amount of therapy, meds, etc is going to be able to make life better for a severely depressed or mentally ill person.
The US is one of only a very small handful of countries that treats everything from headaches and sore backs to mood disorders and PMS with pills. European nations like Iceland, Finland, Germany, France, etc, all have child birth at home (children aren’t a sickness,) and don’t seek medical care or visit an ER unless something is REALLY emergent. Their motto is that life IS hard, get the hell over it. Suck it up, it’ll make you stronger.
I’ve got low levels of CSF (cerebral spinal fluid), which means that my brain matter is constantly rubbing up against my skull. Do I quit school? Do I take narcotics that will make me feel better for a bit all the time? No, I deal with it. I don’t run to the ER when the pain gets unbareable.
It doesn’t matter who you vote for, there’s NO way any candidate is going to make it easy to “get help.” It’s already there, it’s just expensive, a pain in the ass, and not often a fix.
Your post shows a true lack of understanding and comprehension of mental illness. Your clearly passionate about Obama, why don’t you just go out and hold a sign and talk about something that maybe you know about? Cause this isn’t it, honey.
Oh, and yes, I am uninsured (I foresaw your first perry to my comment). Obama’s plan would do nothing to help me get more extensive mental health treatment. Who the hell are you to say that suicide is never an answer. You clearly have never lived in agonizing pain (physical or mental). Not “Oh Em GEE my head is like so totally killing me, I doubt I’ll be able to go to Fur tonight” pain, but pain so unbearable that ending your life is the only alternative to relieve suffering permanently. You have no idea what this man was going through. Who the hell are you to judge?
This guy wanted a way out, and hopefully he got one. Suicide for REAL reasons ( not Waaahhhh, my parents aren’t paying for school) is not a selfish thing, and frequently yes frequently the only way to get TRUE help.
Not everyday you see someone advocate suicide.
I am curious, was this a fall or was he out to injure himself? It could have been an attempted suicide or mental health issues that motivated this man to be on any ledge.
thanks for that EMH, I havent laughed this hard in a long time, you could have possibly posted the stupidest thing I have ever read