Jump threat man causes chaos in city centre

EDINBURGH city centre suffered traffic chaos yesterday as a bridge was cordoned off while police tried to coax down a man threatening to jump from a ledge.

North Bridge was closed to vehicles and pedestrians between High Street and Princes Street while negotiators talked to the man, believed to be in his mid-twenties.

Part of Waverley railway station was evacuated because the man was sitting directly over a glass roof above the station. The platform below was closed off and travellers exiting Waverley station at Market Street were ushered across the road to Jeffrey Street by officers. A fire engine was also at the scene.

A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police said they were alerted by a telephone call from a member of the public. Trained police negotiators arrived at 7.30am to try to persuade the man away from the edge. Food and water were passed to the man, who was perched precariously on the centre parapet.

He said: "He is in such a position that it would be dangerous for someone to attempt to grab him. A decision was taking that it would be a risk to his life and theirs."

The cordon caused massive traffic problems and disruption to many businesses in the area. A spokesman for the Balmoral Hotel, at the corner of North Bridge and Princes Street, said: "Obviously having the bridge closed off has affected business for us, but I can’t comment any further on it."

Police ordered staff at the nearby Scotsman hotel to prevent guests from using the main entrance while negotiations were underway. Visitors leaving the building were redirected through the hotel’s brasserie to an alternative exit.

A receptionist at the hotel said: "I think the guy may have fallen asleep for a while because he sat back for a bit. Other than that, he’s just been perched up on the ledge for hours, swinging his feet."

Late last night the man remained on the parapet as emergency staff prepared to work through the night to persuade him to come down.

North Bridge, which is located above Waverley Station, has been a notorious suicide spot for years.

Three years ago horrified commuters watched Graeme Craig-Smith, a 36-year-old artist, vault to his death from the 100ft bridge.

In 1997 a phone hotline to the Samaritans was installed on the bridge.

The phone was continually vandalised and the organisation decided to remove it and put up signs instead, advising suicidal people to call their national number.