An unidentified student was standing on the ledge of the 16th Street parking structure facing west to 17th Street for an hour Aug. 29. The person eventually stepped back off the ledge, onto the roof of the building and out of harm’s way.
University spokesman Brian Dorrington confirmed it was a student on the ledge.
The Milwaukee Police Department and Marquette University Police Department responded to this incident by taping off 17th Street between Wells Street and Wisconsin Avenue and moving onlookers back to the grassy area in front of O’Donnell Hall. The entrances to the 16th Street parking structure were blocked by an MUPD car, orange cones and an MUPD officer. Students were gathered on the sidewalks in front of McCabe Hall, Humphrey Hall and O’Donnell Hall, the corner of 17th Street and Wells Street across from 7-Eleven.
Nader Shammout, a sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences, was standing on the sidewalk in front of Humphrey Hall for 15 minutes watching what was happening.
“He was just walking back and forth. I don’t know. I’m just watching,” Shammout said.
Police surrounded the entire area on the streets and atop the parking structure. The Milwaukee Fire Department and emergency medical services were also on the scene.
Freshman Cearra Becker from the College of Arts & Sciences waited over 40 minutes in front of O’Donnell to see what was going on.
“I saw police cars in front of the Dogg Haus and thought there was a robbery,” Becker said.
She waited until after police tape was removed from 18th Street to leave the area.
After the student came off the edge to safety at 8:30 p.m., police began removing barricades to 17th Street and the 16th Street entrances to the parking structure, allowing pedestrians to move throughout campus safely.
Two McCabe Hall residents noticed at 7:30 p.m. someone on top of the parking structure leaning over the ledge. The two thought it looked like the person was trying to take a picture from a unique angle. When the person began to stand on the ledge and pace back and forth, the residents immediately called MUPD.
Dorrington said MUPD and MPD responded immediately.
“We are extremely grateful to our officers and our partners at the Milwaukee Police Department for their swift response,” Dorrington said. “We encourage all of our students to seek help when needed.”
Kevin Landgraf, a senior in the College of Engineering, an onlooker, expressed relief saying, “Thank God he stepped down.”