Bridge over Sunset Boulevard closed for more than an hour as Spokane police negotiate with man on railing

Spokane police closed the bridge over Sunset Boulevard for about an hour and a half Tuesday afternoon as negotiators talked to a man who was standing on the railing.

Negotiators were able to convince the man to walk to one end of the bridge, but he jumped toward the bank when he reached it and fell, said Stacy Flynn, a Spokane Police Department spokesperson.

“He tumbled and got hurt, so we detained him and took him up to the hospital to get checked out,” Sgt. Isamu Yamada.

The man had serious but not life-threatening injuries, according to Spokane Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer. Firefighters performed a modified technical rescue to recover the injured man, he said.

The road opened in both directions at about 4 p.m., Flynn said.