A bystander awoken by screams in the middle of the night credits Greater Sudbury Police officers with saving a young woman's life June 10.
At around 2 a.m. Tuesday morning, Donald Clarke heard screams coming from the direction of the Bridge of Nations on Paris Street.
Clarke, who lives on nearby Medora Street, said at first he thought it was some rowdy university students returning home from a night at the Townehouse Tavern.
But the screams continued.
Concerned, Clarke jumped out of bed and made his way to his front yard, where he said he saw a young woman hanging from the base of a flag pole over the railing.
The young woman was not alone, Clarke said. A person nearby, who appeared to be a friend, was in distress.
Police officers were already on the bridge, he said, and one held onto the young woman to keep her from falling.
Clarke said he could hear the young woman yelling.
The officer kept asking her to hold on until help could arrive to get her back over the railing. What amazed Clarke was how long officers were able to keep hold of her while waiting for firefighters to arrive, which they eventually did and assisted police officers in lifting the young woman to safety.
Clarke said the officers were heroic in the way they handled the situation.
“I think they did a great job and they're not often recognized,” he said.
Greater Sudbury Police Staff Sgt. Rick Waugh estimated officers held onto the woman for as long as 25 minutes before help arrived so they could get her over the railing.
“Several officers grabbed a hold of her and held on for some time,” Waugh said. “If they weren't able to hold her for as long as they did it probably wouldn't have ended so well.”
He congratulated the officers on their work that saved the young woman's life.
“I already addressed my officers in lineup about their exceptional work in helping out this young lady,” he said. “I definitely recognize the fact that they did everything they could to help her.”
After she was lifted over the railings, the officers brought the young woman to Health Sciences North.
