Police close Seattle streets after man climbs tree, throws apples
Mar 22, 2016, 5:33 PM
Emergency crews are working to get a man out of a tall tree in downtown Seattle. (KIRO 7)
(KIRO 7)
Downtown Seattle streets have been shut down as emergency crews work to get a man out of a tall tree.
Police continue to negotiate with the man who is in a tree between 3rd and 4th Avenues on Stewart, near the Macy’s building. He is reportedly as high at 80 feet from the ground atop the sequoia.
The Seattle Police Department reports that it is negotiating with the man, but have not been successful in removing him from the tree. The man threw an apple at medics who attempted to respond to the incident.
He also has begun ripping branches off the tree around him and tossing them to the ground. The man has also reportedly tossed pine cones.
The man briefly climbed down the tree at 5 p.m., but didn’t make it far and soon climbed back up to the top. Negotiators reportedly tossed him a cigarette, and he climbed down through the tree to retrieve it, then moved back to his perch.
A crowd of people has gathered around the scene that is next to the Macy’s building on 4th Avenue and Stewart Street. The Seattle Department of Transportation advised that traffic in the area of downtown would continue to be affected as long as the man was in the tree. King County Metro also advised that its buses were being rerouted because of the incident, which would cause delays.
Within a couple hours of the man scaling the tree, twitter accounts were created and dedicated to him, @Man_in_Tree, and the firefighter negotiating with him atop the ladder, @SassyFireman. The hashtag #ManinTree was also trending.
#LIVE: Downtown streets close to get man down from tall tree: https://t.co/FSAvsYyi2c pic.twitter.com/TiyNjG7fMo
— KIRO 7 (@KIRO7Seattle) March 22, 2016
@JeffDubois @KIRO7Seattle pic.twitter.com/SDyOon6u0v
— Jud Lind (@JudL) March 22, 2016
Follow @https://twitter.com/DyerOxley
