Belgium Man Afraid of Deportation Tried Jumping off B’klyn Bridge

 A Belgian man frightened that he could be deported was talked down from a beam above the roadway of the Brooklyn Bridge early Sunday morning, after he had reportedly been threatening to jump.

According to the Post, two NYPD officers had been patrolling the bridge's pedestrian path shortly after midnight Sunday when they happened upon two bags filled with clothes and personal items. While searching for the bags' owner, they spotted the man standing on an out-of-bounds beam above the Manhattan-bound road, threatening to jump to his death.

The officers quickly radioed for backup and halted traffic on the road beneath the man, the Daily News reports. Moments later, an officer from the nearby 84th NYPD Precinct climbed onto one of the bridge's cables to speak with the man, who shared his fears of being sent out of the country.

The man reportedly said he had come to the U.S. from Belgium on a tourist visa, the Post notes. The officer successfully talked the man down from the beam, and emergency responders took him to Bellevue Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.

If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone; remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt; and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.

 Gothamist.com