A backhoe was used to allow a man on a ledge just below the road surface of the West Seattle Bridge to climb in its bucket and be lowered to safety.
Screen capture from SPD Video
Information from SPD Blotter
Some jobs call for a ladder, others call for a 13 tons of steel, 127 horsepower (net, of course) and a quiet, but powerful hydraulic system.
Witnesses called 911 Thursday afternoon to report a man on a ledge in the 2600 block of SW Spokane Street.
Officers found the man standing on a ledge that they estimated to be six inches wide, occasionally slipping. Fearing for the man’s safety, Officer Morgan Irwin, whom you may remember from the time he commandeered a jetski, spotted a nearby backhoe driving down the road. Officer Irwin ran over to the driver and asked him for help.
The driver was able to position the machinery below the 48-year-old man allowing him to safely jump inside it.
Once on the ground, medics took the man to the hospital for a medical evaluation.
Officer Irwin could not be reached for comment about what he planned to commandeer next.
