Florida woman falls to her death as drawbridge rises

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – A woman fell to her death from the Royal Park Bridge in West Palm Beach Sunday afternoon and the bridge tender is said to be “distraught” following the tragedy.

The unidentified woman was walking across the bridge with her bicycle about 1 p.m. when the drawbridge began to rise, according to The Palm Beach Post.

The victim was about 10 feet away from the end of the bridge at the time, according to the news outlet. The bridge connects Palm Beach to downtown West Palm Beach.

“She was walking her bike from east to west and had almost reached the furthest point of the moveable span when it went up,” West Palm Beach Police spokesman Mike Jachles told the newspaper.

As the bridge was in motion and she began to fall, a bystander grabbed her but was unable to maintain a grip, according to police, Yahoo News reported.

“The woman tried to hang on. There was a bystander nearby who tried to help her, but tragically she fell five or six stories” before landing on concrete, Jachles told WPTV.

Police said a bridge tender — who is in charge of operation and safe passage — was on duty at the time.

“That bridge tender has certain safety protocols to follow,” Jachles told WPTV, explaining that the protocols include “making several visual confirmation that there is nobody at either of the spans or past those gates” before the gate rises.

Responding police officers described the bridge tender as “distraught,” according to The Palm Beach Post.

The bridge remained closed for several hours following the fatal fall as the investigation took place. Detectives are tasked with trying to determine why the drawbridge began to rise before all pedestrians had a chance to clear it.

“At some point it opened,” Jachles told The Palm Beach Post. Hence, the actions the bridge tender took before the bridge opened will be scrutinized.

The bridge is maintained by the state Department of Transportation but its bridge tenders are staffed by a private state contractor, according to Jachles.

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Source: www.lawofficer.com