Going against the narrative.
Via WISTV:
When Richland County Sheriff’s Department Lt. McLendon pulled up to the overpass of Highway 277 and Parklane Road to find a man standing on the side of the bridge, he knew he didn’t have much time.
“I walked up as quickly as I could and all I could think was ‘risk vs. reward. I’ve got to get this guy,’’” Lt. McLendon recalled.
The man was on the phone and very distraught when Lt. McLendon arrived. He told Lt. McLendon his wife and kids left him and he did not see another alternative. Lt. McLendon tried to calm the man down and said he just spoke from the heart.
“It was very unscripted,” Lt. McLendon said. “I told him I loved him. Don’t jump. I wasn’t going to let him jump.”
As he held onto him, Lt. McLendon was able to call for help on his radio. RCSD Senior investigator David Goff later arrived and helped pull the man back over the railing.
“We both had him,” Lt. McLendon said. “The investigator told him, ‘You’re not going to jump. We’re not going to let you do that. And if you do, you’re taking us with you.’ And he said, ‘Well, you’re going with me.’ And we said, ‘No, we’re not. You’re not going over that bridge.’”
Soon after, EMS arrived and put the man into an ambulance.
“He kept saying, ‘I’m going to jump out,’” Goff said. “And I finally said, ‘No, you’re not. If I have to ride in there with you, you’re going to the hospital. He stopped, looked at me, and said, ‘Will you meet me there?’ And I said, ‘Yes.’”