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Victim dies in fall from E Madison TV tower

IMG_0529A person who had climbed one of the 1000-foot towers that rise above E Madison fell to his death early Saturday morning.

Police and Seattle Fire were called to the scene just before 3 AM by friends waiting at the base of the complex of towers that rise above E Madison and are visible across the city. The caller said the male was suicidal and had climbed so high on the eastern tower that he could no longer be seen from the ground. The 911 caller said the male was texting pictures from high on the tower to friends below, according to East Precinct radio dispatches.

Seattle Fire initiated a rescue response and a portion of E Madison was closed to traffic. A witness told CHS she saw somebody fall from the tower around 3:10 AM. Seattle Fire and police were inspecting the scene around a utility building at the base of the tower at 18th and Madison after the fall.

An emergency responder at the scene told CHS the victim had died.IMG_0524

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Dm
Dm
10 years ago

Is “victim” really the right word here? Regardless, this is horribly tragic.

Ryan on Summit
Ryan on Summit
10 years ago
Reply to  Dm

Yes. Victims of suicide clearly should be called nothing else.

MFS
MFS
10 years ago

Tragic this man took his own life, but it’s remarkable that dozens of first responders, police officers, etc. took great effort in trying to prevent him from taking his own life.

Renee Drellishak
Renee Drellishak
10 years ago
Reply to  MFS

Why is that remarkable? It’s what they do.

BB
BB
10 years ago

I heard all the hullabaloo around that time and wondered what was going on. RIP dude.

Rachel
Rachel
10 years ago
Reply to  BB

I live right across the street and somehow slept through it! I guess I am glad I did, because I am pretty nosey and probably would have tried to go outside and poke around. Such a terrible thing to have happened. Poor guy.

Bernice Ashcraft-Palm
Bernice Ashcraft-Palm
10 years ago
Reply to  Rachel

What a horrible tragedy! I live in the bldg. right beneath the tower; one tenant here in particular said the poor guy landed very close to her bedroom window. There is still cleanup behind and around our bldg. going on right now & it’s Sat. around 4pm. RIP!

Brandi Fisher
Brandi Fisher
10 years ago

do the friends & police know that someone in my building seen him on our property earlier that day to plot this? he was on site around 2 something that afternoon. i hope he found the peace he was looking for. and i hope his friends didn’t see what i saw.

Brian Redder
10 years ago

I wish his family the best through this tragedy.

CHdude
CHdude
10 years ago

Is there a good reason to climb these????

Texting and climbing towers don’t mix.

Kristen
Kristen
10 years ago
Reply to  CHdude

As someone who just lost a family member in a similar situation a couple of months ago, I can’t believe how insensitive people are being.

To the loved ones of the victim: know that there are people who feel for you and the person you cared for.

Not a climber
Not a climber
10 years ago
Reply to  CHdude

I think it’s an important question to ask. You see the YouTube movies of the guys over in Russia who do this sort of thing, and that obviously glorifies it, but it is incredibly dangerous. The equipment on those towers can electrocute you just by being in proximity of it. They are as dangerous as the high voltage electric towers on Beacon Hill.

Oversight
Oversight
10 years ago

A man died. I will wait for the medical examiner to determine the cause of death. I will not let hearsay or third-hand reporting lead me to a conclusion about the cause of death. A man died. He and his family deserve compassion and sympathy, regardless.

paul
10 years ago
Reply to  Oversight

I dont think cause of death is up for much debate.

Oversight
Oversight
10 years ago
Reply to  paul

Let us look to the text of this article:

“The caller said the male was suicidal”

Key phrase: “The caller said” – The caller may have known the victim or may have not. The caller may have speculated on the victim’s state of mind without really knowing it. The caller may have told 911 that the caller was suicidal thinking that response would have been quicker. Whatever the case, it is hearsay – not fact.

Maybe the guy wanted to climb up on a dare – a dare by himself or others. Maybe he wanted some cool pictures, Maybe he slipped. That is NOT suicide; that is an accident. But you don’t really know, now do you?

Let us look at another snippet of text from the article: “A witness told CHS she saw somebody fall from the tower around 3:10 AM.”

“Fall,” not “jump” or “leap.” Fall is neutral, indicating neither intent or mishap.

I will let the professionals make the pronouncements about the cause of death. You should, as well. And so should CHS. If it’s determined that his death was an unfortunate accident, do you think you’ll see a retraction or correction in these pages? That would be the professional thing to do.

Bernice Ashcraft-Palm
Bernice Ashcraft-Palm
10 years ago
Reply to  jseattle

Please do update us if you hear anything. I live in the building that was directly affected, i.e. the guy fell onto our property and cleanup/repairs was still going on yesterday. Mon. March 3. We were very surprised that there is so little said about the incident via the media. Thanks!

caphilllover@hotmail.com
10 years ago
Reply to  Oversight

It doesn’t make a difference if he jumped or fell. The cause of death remains the same.