Man spends 11 hours atop TV tower near Plzeň, threatens suicide

In the town of Horní Bříza near Plzeň, a man climbed a transmission tower at around 10 p.m. and refused to come down, threatening to take his own life. It took 11 hours to talk him into descending — negotiations were led by a specially trained police negotiator, police spokeswoman Eva Červenková said.

Several patrol units remained on the scene throughout the standoff. According to Červenková, the negotiator established contact with the man and gradually persuaded him to climb down to safety. Police said the man had been dealing with personal problems but declined to provide further details.

The man's condition now

After coming down, the man was handed over to paramedics with no visible injuries. A breathalyzer test showed 0.2 per mille of alcohol in his blood, while a drug test came back negative. According to Luboš Bouček, a spokesman for the regional emergency medical service, an ambulance crew took the man to a psychiatric facility.

Horní Bříza's mayor, David Kapr, said he had only been informed that integrated rescue services were operating at the scene. "I don't have any further details about what happened," he added.

Source: novinky.cz