WALLA WALLA, Wash. — A man who was threatening to hang himself from a balcony at Whitman College was stopped by Walla Walla firefighters and police officers on Saturday, Jan. 9, according to a news release.

According to the police department release, dispatchers were notified around 11 a.m. on Jan. 9 of a man who was suicidal. Family members of the man told police he had left their home with the intention to kill himself.

Police were then notified of a man spotted on a balcony at the Whitman College with a rope around his neck. 

Officers and Walla Walla Fire Department personnel arrived and began speaking with the man while another officer and a firefighter went into the building to get closer to him, the release noted.

At one point, the man reportedly removed the rope from his neck to adjust it. The officer and the firefighter in the building took advantage of the moment, grabbed the man off the ledge and tackled him to the floor.

The man was taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation and treatment, the release noted.

Police spokesman Officer Gunner Fulmer said in the release that firefighters and officers of the city have had a great working relationship and “this just shows how good we can work together for the public.”