In Minneapolis, Minnesota, a suicidal man hanged over the side of an overpass, on Interstate 94, threatening to jump.
A quick thinking Minnesota State Patrolman, Trooper Carl Hoffman, remembered something he had learned in a training class about lining trucks under an overpass to break the fall of a suicidal victim. He said he wasn’t sure if it would work, but he though he should try.
“We walked back to a couple of trucks and asked if they would be willing to help us,” Hoffman said. Two trucks rolled up under the overpass, but the man countered and “began to shuffle over where the semis weren’t.”
Trying to fill in all the gaps, Hoffman and fellow trooper Ben Berkowitz “got another semi, then he would shuffle over; then we got another one, and he would shuffle over.”
At one point, Hoffman said, the man “would hold onto the fence and lean back as if he’s ready to fall.”
Eventually 6 trucks were lined up side-by-side under the bridge. The truck’s distance to the top of the overpass, would cut the man’s fall in half.
While the semis were lining up under the bridge.
After a struggle, the man was pulled from the edge and taken into custody.
The drama over, “we told the truckers to take off,” trooper Hoffman said, leaving the identities of the good Samaritans a mystery to authorities. “We had traffic backed up, and we got them out of there as quickly as we could.”
Hoffman was impressed that all the truckers who were approached “were more than willing” to help. “It was amazing. One semi driver said he’s actually done this before in Florida.”
While the troopers were commended for their quick thinking, the truckers went unnamed. They were the true heroes of the day. It is the trooper’s job to prevent the man from killing himself– the truckers stopped their day, and risked damage to their trailers to help a desperate man. They should be commended, as well.
Great job, truckers– whoever you are.