Tarrytown, NY – Man Dangles For Hours Off NY’s Tappan Zee Bridge

Tarrytown, NY – A former government worker dangled for hours from New York’s Tappan Zee Bridge with a protest sign on Monday, backing up traffic for miles before police lowered him safely to the water.

Michael Davitt, 54, of Garnerville, N.Y., had been angry about losing his job with the Rockland County mental health department, Sheriff James Kralik said.

On Monday morning, he climbed down a rope ladder and hung for hours about halfway between the Hudson River and the bridge roadway before police got him down. He held a sign accusing county officials of a “cover-up” and “retaliation.”

“This is bizarre,” Rockland County spokesman Ron Levine said. “This is a very strange way of making a point.”

State police lowered Davitt nearly to the water at about 2 p.m. He then jumped or fell from a height of about 10 feet and was immediately hauled on board a boat.

The Tappan Zee bridge is a major crossing north of New York City that connects suburban Westchester and Rockland counties. The rescue effort forced crews to close much of the eastbound side of the bridge, backing up traffic deep into Rockland County.

Davitt has been a frequent sight at Rockland County Legislature meetings, picketing by himself outside the county building in New City and trying to argue his case to county officials, Kralik said.

Kralik said he sent a deputy to provide security during the meetings after Davitt sent the legislators letters “which some people considered threatening.”

“We decided to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn’t step over the line, and he never did,” Kralik said. “Today he not only stepped over the line, he jumped over it.”