#ManInTree is still in tree, portions of Olive Wy. and Stewart St. remain closed https://t.co/M4uc2jXr5p pic.twitter.com/5le2uzmEBv
— seattlepi (@seattlepi) March 23, 2016
As Ansel noted last night, a man climbed up an 80-foot sequoia tree in Downtown Seattle yesterday. Although the Seattle Police Department had to close down streets yesterday and this morning. But, thankfully, they don't believe he is a threat to public safety.
.@heyjessibrown There will likely be traffic impacts in the area, but issue appears to be between the man and the tree.
— Seattle Police Dept. (@SeattlePD) March 22, 2016
Although, the Man In Tree has been reportedly throwing down tree branches, pinecones, orange peels, and an apple at medics. He dropped a few other things, too. From The Washington Post:
Police told the Seattle Times that they were concerned about the man’s mental health and did not want to rush the rescue lest it jeopardized his safety. ...
Scott Bonjukian, who works on the seventh floor of a building next to the tree, wrote in an email to The Washington Post that he was alerted to the man when he heard a police officer yelling at him through a bullhorn.
“We watched for several hours as police tried to talk him down,” Bonjukian said. “It was somewhat funny until he started ripping off limbs and defecating.”
I mean, he is going on two days up there.
Bonjukian poignantly concludes:
He added: “Homelessness and affordable housing have become big topics in Seattle, along with lack of funding for mental health at the state level. I’m sure this will spur conversations about those kinds of policy, along with more hashtags and parody Twitter accounts.”
Although our Man in Tree has now caused a two-day traffic headache for folks driving in downtown Seattle, at the very least, he is sparking new conversations about important city issues.
At the @neighborhouse breakfast & Dep. Mayor Joncas said what I've been thinking: #ManInTree = "emblematic" of a failed mental health system
— Hanna Brooks Olsen (@mshannabrooks) March 23, 2016
Washington State is ranked 47th in mental health care. #ManInTree #MentalHealth #Fact https://t.co/1007QAeK8Q https://t.co/tkuYpVIiDY
— Pamela Lamon (@PamLamon) March 23, 2016
"Untreated and mistreated mental illness costs the United States $150 billion in lost productivity" - @kcnews #ManInTree #Awareness
— Man In Tree (@Man_In_Tree) March 23, 2016
In the meantime, our newest celeb has completely captured Seattle's imagination. The still-nameless man and even the sequoia tree itself have parody Twitter accounts.
Not good. #ManInTree https://t.co/Gu6S7pkEkk
— Man In Tree (@Man_In_Tree) March 23, 2016
...And the event that caused an entire city to joyously procrastinate together continues! #ManInTree
— Macy's Tree (@TreeMacy) March 23, 2016
And a t-shirt!
I made a T-shirt. #ManInTree pic.twitter.com/pCFXbFTM6n
— Ryan (@ryantheflyinguy) March 23, 2016
While we continue to lose our collective minds over the #ManInTree, you can keep an eye on the professional percher here:
#ManInTree sits atop #Seattle tree for 23+ hours. Police continue negotiations. NOW #LIVE: https://t.co/lHw0RbvJsB pic.twitter.com/QHtUWHdzj4
— KIRO 7 (@KIRO7Seattle) March 23, 2016
Update 12:08 p.m.: According to KOMO News, the Man In Tree is now back on the ground. "The man sat on the ground for a few minutes, eating a piece of fruit, and then police and medics arrived with a gurney to take care of him," they reported.