A 20-year-old man who threatened to kill himself by jumping off the Santa Rosa overpass onto Highway 101 in San Luis Obispo led to the closure of northbound Highway 101 in San Luis for more than two hours Tuesday night.
The man called police at 11:30 p.m., saying he was going to commit suicide. Officers found the man perched on the outer edge of the Santa Rosa Street overpass.
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A member of the San Luis Obispo Police Department's Crisis Negotiation Team started face-to-face negotiations with the man, while the CHP closed the northbound lanes of Highway 101. Traffic was rerouted to surface streets through the city before being allowed back on the freeway.
Santa Rosa Street between Olive and Walnut streets was also closed in both directions during the incident.
After approximately two hours of negotiation, the man agreed to come back over the railing and surrendered to officers, according to officials. He was taken into custody for a 72-hour mental health evaluation.
The man was not a student, police say, and was apparently despondent over financial and personal issues.
The Sheriff's Department and Cal Poly police assisted in handling calls to the San Luis Obispo Police Department during the incident.
-Larissa Doust
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