Seattle superhero attempted to coerce man from tree with beer and food
Mar 22, 2016, 12:05 PM | Updated: May 13, 2016, 9:58 pm
Emergency crews are working to get a man out of a tall tree in downtown Seattle. (KIRO 7)
(KIRO 7)
Seattle’s superhero attempted to coerce the man who refuses to leave a tree in Downtown Seattle with food and beer.
Phoenix Jones tweeted that he could help, but Seattle police said they have the situation under control.
Finally @SeattlePD took the food and beer not interested in help I seriously know this guy and can help #letphoenixjoneshelp
— Phoenix Jones (@ThePhoenixJones) March 23, 2016
The man Jones attempted to help climbed an 80-foot sequoia tree in Downtown Seattle Tuesday. He has been there more than 20 hours.
Olive Way remains closed between 3rd Avenue and 4th Avenue for negotiations. Stewart Street is closed from 4th and 5th as well.
UPDATE: Olive Way remains closed from 3rd-4th, and Stewart St is still closed from 4th-5th for #ManInTree incident pic.twitter.com/N6RrOc7JXM
— seattledot (@seattledot) March 23, 2016
Police initially got reports of the man in the approximately 80-foot-tall tree at 11 a.m. on Tuesday. The tree is between 3rd and 4th Avenues on Stewart, near the Macy’s building.
The Seattle Police Department reports that it is continually negotiating with the man, but officers 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.
Seattle police report that the man appears to be “suffering from a crisis,” is refusing to speak with officers, but has said he is armed with a knife.
The man briefly climbed down the tree at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, 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.
In another instance, a woman nearly got him out of the tree when she promised him a kiss, KIRO 7 reports.
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.
The Seattle Police Department reports that it has been in place since the 1970s. Once the man comes down from the tree, the Seattle Department of Transportation is expected to inspect the tree to determine its health after the encounter.
#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
