Calm was restored after a woman who had been standing on the roof of the Sandton Mall since early on Friday morning and threatening to jump off was taken to a place of safety in the afternoon. Sandton City management together with the police and the South African Depression and Anxiety Group facilitated the escort of the woman to a place of safety.
Emergency personnel were forced to block off traffic in Alice Lane in Johannesburg on Friday after a woman who stood on top of the Sandton City mall who looked very distressed threaten to jump. However, following hours of negotiations, the authorities were able to convince the woman to come down to the ledge, where she was then moved to a place of safety.
Sandton City said it is operating as normal after the woman was moved from the roof and placed in the care of her family. The mall had earlier tweeted that a “distressed individual is threatening to jump from their building”.
Although Sandton City said it became aware of the woman who threatened to jump from their roof at 09:45am, eyewitnesses said the woman could be seen on the roof as early as 07:30am. The cordoned street was filled with paramedics, security officials and metro police who all assisted in dispersing the crowds throughout the day.
The mall’s management thanked the operations team for their relentless effort and support during that difficult moment, the woman is in safe with her family and potential tragedy was prevented.
Source: Eyewitness News, The Citizen, image from Twitter Link to video: