A man who appeared to be under a blanket on a bridge above the 405 Freeway in Inglewood Thursday night drew an extended police response that backed up traffic for miles for more than three hours.
The California Highway Patrol received a call at approximately 6:23 p.m. regarding a man wearing a white shirt and dark pants climbing a metal fence by a bridge near the Manchester Boulevard on-ramp, said CHP Officer Patrick Kimball.
Los Angeles County firefighters were also called to assist in trying to coax the man down, Kimball said.
“The initial call was the man was a jumper,'' Kimball said.
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CHP closed all but one lane of the southbound portion of the freeway near the overpass around 6:40 p.m. and all but one lane of the northbound portion an hour later, causing a traffic snarl during rush hour.
Traffic was diverted to Manchester and La Cienega boulevards during the response. All northbound lanes were reopened just after 11 p.m.