The incident happened around noon Tuesday on the Churton Street overpass near Hillsborough. Sgt. Joe Holloway and Hillsborough Police Chief Nathaniel Eubanks talked the woman out of committing suicide.
"I told her this is a new year. She said she had two children," Eubanks says. "I said how would she feel knowing that those children were alone because she committed suicide."
"At one point, I told the chief that I'll tell the deputies to come up on the other side to hoping that would distract her, so he can possibly make a move on her," Holloway says.
Once the officers got close enough to the woman, they grabbed her. At the same time, her feet slipped off the ledge, but they held her tightly and pulled her to safety.
"I'm here to serve and protect, and if I would have let her fall, I wouldn't have been protecting," Holloway says.
Holloway also says this is the first time in his 23 years on the force that he experienced this type of situation, but he says his training kicked in. He says the woman hugged him and shook his hands several times, thanking him for saving her life.
The woman is currently undergoing psychiatric evaluation at UNC Hospitals.
• Credits
Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
