Video: NYPD's Daring High-Rise Rescue of Distraught Woman on Ledge

May 7, 2024
Detectives from the NYPD's Emergency Service Unit (ESU) used ropes to save a woman in mental crisis who was hanging from the rooftop ledge of a 54-story building.

NYPD officers saved a distraught woman who was hanging from the roof of a city high-rise in an amazing rescue last week.

The dramatic rescue happened shortly after 3 p.m. May 1 after the department's Emergency Service Unit (ESU) detectives responded to a call concerning a woman who appeared to be ready to jump from the ledge of a 54-story building. Body camera footage of the incident was posted to the NYPD's Facebook page Monday.

At the scene, detectives discovered that glass barriers separated them from the woman on the rooftop ledge. As an officer whose body camera recorded the rescue held on to the woman's arm, two other officers used ropes cleared the barriers to reach her. 

Once the two detectives had the woman, they lifted her over the glass and onto the roof. The video switches to the body camera of one of the roped-up detectives to show the end of the rescue.

“When the public needs help, they call the police. When the police need help, they call ESU,” the NYPD wrote in the Facebook post.

Editor's note: If you're experiencing suicidal thoughts and feelings. call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 988 or go to 988lifeline.org for help. 

 
About the Author

Joe Vince

Joining Endeavor Business Media in 2018, Joe has worked on the company's city services publications. He began working at OFFICER.com as the assistant editor. Before starting at Endeavor, Joe had worked for a variety of print and online news outlets, including the Indianapolis Star, the South Bend Tribune, Reddit and Patch.com.

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