Distraught Man Rescued From I-580 Overpass

DUBLIN, CA — A distraught man was rescued from jumping off a highway overpass last weekend thanks to the quick thinking of a retired Alameda County Sheriff’s Office employee and several Dublin deputies. Police from several agencies were sent to investigate a report of a man on the Fallon Road overpass who appeared as if he was going to jump onto the highway Saturday afternoon.

Police officials said the man was on the outside of the fenced barrier. A retired Alameda County Sheriff’s Office captain was first on scene and held onto the man’s coat through the fencing until officers from Dublin and the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office arrived, according to police.

"Deputies were able to get a hold of one of the subject's wrist and handcuff him to the fencing so he could not jump," Dublin Police Captain Nathan Schmidt told Patch.

The California Highway Patrol officers closed the highway for about ten minutes. Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department crews responded and cut a hole in the fencing so officers could pull him back to safety. The man was taken to a nearby hospital for a medical evaluation. No one was injured during the rescue.

In 2015, police officers and firefighters rescued a 50-year-old woman who was hanging on the outside of the chain-link fencing of an overpass about 30 to 50 feet above the Union Pacific train tracks in Livermore.

Officials remind the community that there are many resources available to those who may need help.

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