A Team Effort Brings Down a Wanted Man in Rochester
Rochester, MN (KROC AM News) -- It was a standoff of sorts in Rochester last night involving the Minnesota State Patrol, the Olmsted County Sheriff’s Department K-9 unit and the Rochester Fire Department at the 75th Street bridge over the Zumbro River.
It began around 5 p.m., when a man wanted by the State Patrol attempted to flee. According to Steve Belau of the Rochester Fire Department, the man was tracked with the help of the Sheriff’s K-9 unit, under the 75th Street bridge over the Zumbro River in Cascade Township.
He was perched on the superstructure on the underside of the bridge, wedged between a support beam and a drain pipe beneath the bridge deck, about 50 feet above the flowing river.
The Sheriff’s office summoned the Fire Department water rescue team to prepare for a water rescue in case the man fell into the river.
Eventually, the Minnesota Department of Transportation's bridge inspection snorkel truck was called to the scene once it was determined the use of that special vehicle was the safest way to rescue the man.
The snorkel is a boom truck that can position its bucket below, allowing access to the underside of the bridge deck.
After about two hours, according to the report, the Olmsted County law enforcement crisis negotiators finally convinced the man to accept rescue.
He was taken into custody by the State Patrol and escorted by ambulance to St. Mary’s hospital for evaluation of possible hypothermia due to the duration of his exposure to the sub-freezing conditions.
The man's identity or the nature of his crime was not made available at this time.