Man 'under the influence' falls off Hwy. 18 bridge
MAPLE VALLEY, Wash. - Rescue crews closed two lanes of Highway 18 near Maple Falls on Friday morning as they responded to a report of a man who fell off a bridge near the intersection with Highway 169.
Deputy Akers of the King County Sheriff's Office says it appears the man was under the influence of drugs or alcohol when he tumbled off the bridge at about 5:45 a.m.
The man then used his cell phone to call for help. Firefighters responded, but it took them more than an hour to find the victim, who was lying at the bottom of a ravine with broken bones.
Once the man was located, responders used ladders and ropes to extricate him and pull him out of the ravine. He is expected to recover.
One lane is closed in each direction of Highway 18 during the rescue.
Deputy Akers of the King County Sheriff's Office says it appears the man was under the influence of drugs or alcohol when he tumbled off the bridge at about 5:45 a.m.
The man then used his cell phone to call for help. Firefighters responded, but it took them more than an hour to find the victim, who was lying at the bottom of a ravine with broken bones.
Once the man was located, responders used ladders and ropes to extricate him and pull him out of the ravine. He is expected to recover.
One lane is closed in each direction of Highway 18 during the rescue.
how far did he fall? come on komo give us some details!
Trying to fly?
 @DDG Just like that idiot Colton Harris-Moore, he nailed the flying part, but couldn't figure out how to land without crashing.Â
He might have been drunk or high, but at least he wasn't driving!
 @WAbornnraised Very true!
Is that called hitting "rock bottom"? (sorry couldn't help myself)...
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I'm glad he wasn't driving and that he is going to be ok. I'm hoping that he learns a serious lesson from this and starts making better choices in his life. He has been given a 2nd chance. If he is smart, he'll embrace it.
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Like Marge said, It really is Maple "falls" :) Thanks for the laugh!
 @swansong68 "Rock bottom" was pretty good, too, I needed that laugh! :^DÂ
Hey, at least he wasn't behind the wheel and injured anyone else but himself! Kudos for that.
Probably weed.
Look at all the equipment sent out for this one drunk or drugged individual? Seems like such a waste when they have other calls in their area they now could not respond to. Leave him there, toss him some jerkey and water...he'll be fine. Can't fix stupid folks so lets move on.
 @burmesepythondude wow hope you never need help!
Ok, it's taken me 10 minutes to quit laughing about the jerky but, that's pretty cold. I think the guy broke stuff too. :)
 @swansong68 And good luck eating the jerky if he knocked out a few teeth when he hit. Although since his cell phone apparently still works, maybe some potential revenue there from the phone manufacturer â fall off of a bridge and still be able to call for help.Â
Your phone takes a wrecking, but keeps on texting...Â
@MargeGunderson @swansong68 if its one of the local drunks then he probably doesnt have teeth to worry about ,, maple valley is riddled with drunk homeless people and drug users
Could have picked a better landing zone. Booze ain't curing his problems.
The poor guy might have just been trying to take the shortcut back home to the woods. I walk the Cedar River Trail and see the same three "campers" near the first trestle over the river that's behind the restaurant just about every time I go down there.Â
 @johnbe I wondered that too but he was way over by the 244th exit, it's pretty far.  I know those guys - you know the bearded one?  He is the nicest guy you'd ever want to meet, works when he can, doesn't abuse any substances, just keeps falling deeper into the hole and is having trouble climbing out.
@Doxie @johnbe zack is a wonderful man who we all try to help out when we can ,, so please say hi when you see him
 @spooch28  @Doxie  @johnbe I see him each week.  He got a bit of good news - he found his ID!  That makes his life a little easier.
Oh I thought it was down by the Market. That's the only place I could think where Hwy 18 "intersects" with the Maple Valley Hwy. I always say hello to those guys, but they like to keep their backs to the trail walkers and I respect their need to keep to themselves.
A narrowly missed Darwin award!
Another classic example of the abuse of booze,,, hmmmmmm the other legal drug.
He needs treatment
 @hello He needs treatment????  Most people who need treatment are pretty good at hiding their use.  Â
So this guy had too much to drink, I have a feeling he has learned his lesson. Â
@hello you should stop huffing gas. Moderation is the key.
It's Maple Valley, not Maple Falls.
 @swansong68 In this case, it actually is Maple "Falls" :^D Â
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Seriously, thanks for clarifying that, though; I did wonder if it was yet another KOMO-esque poor attention to detail, or if there actually is a real Maple Falls.Â
There is a Maple Falls but it's by Mt Baker I believe. I'm pretty sure HWY 18 doesn't run that way :)
 @swansong68 yeah theres a good 100 mile difference there...
Being under the influence at 5:45 a.m. On a weekday. This guys life seems pretty messed up and off track. Maybe this will be a major wake up call for him.Â
 @achoo2 I don't know exactly what time bars close around here, but if you're out drinking til 2am, you will probably still be intoxicated and very drowsy at 5:30. This is not implausible or shocking, especially if he works afternoons or evenings, which of course some people have to do. Jobs that happen at night are often the jobs that make the day run smoothly, like shipping, and stocking stores.
 @spacegoddess  @achoo2 Excellent points, and just fyi, bars close at 2 a.m. here, with last call usually somewhere between 1:30 and 1:45.Â
I've always thought it would be a good idea to, instead of herding them all out at 2 a.m. on the dot, to start serving breakfast.
Yes, only time will sober up a drunk, but food in their stomachs plus more time for the alcohol to work its way through, plus not all the drunk folkss hitting the road simultaneously, could help lessen the DUI fatalities we read about all too often.Â
 @spacegoddess  @achoo2 No offense, but there are absolutely no bars for miles around where he fell off the highway.  Heck, there aren't even houses for maybe a mile from there, assuming he was going to walk the ramp.  He's so lucky he 'only' fell off the overpass and didn't get hit, it's a very skinny shoulder there. Â
 @spooch28  @Doxie  @spacegoddess  @achoo2 There is?  Which one?
@Doxie @spacegoddess @achoo2 actually there is a bar just down the road from there
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 @Jalharad  @spacegoddess  @achoo2 Yes, but that doesn't really explain what he was doing on that particular stretch of highway.  There's nothing near there!  Worst case, he could have been driving and abandoned his car somewhere on that road. Â
 @Doxie  @spacegoddess  @achoo2 Leave work @ 1am. Stop by store and buy 5th of alcohol. Finish 5th by 4am. toss bottle. still easily drunk around 6am.
 @achoo2 Because no one works weekends and has the a weekday off or works graveyard or nights.  He isn't the brightest that he was so drunk to get hurt but don't condemn people for not having a standard work schedule.  I worked graveyard and hated it when people would get on my or make comments about buying beer in the morning or asking for a drink after work at a restaurant when other were ordering breakfast.
 @APenny4MyThoughts  @achoo2 It's really none of their biz what you're buying and drinking when, as long as you aren't getting behind the wheel or otherwise putting innocent people at risk.
I've often wondered when visiting Reno or Las Vegas, how so many people could drink, especially the hard stuff, in the early morning (typical breakfast) hours. But it would never even enter my mind to grill a complete stranger, or infer they have an addiction issue, when they're not causing a disruption or staggering out with keys in hand.Â
 @achoo2 Although I agree with you, Not everyone works mon-fri 9-5
   @Dark  Back in my early days I worked graveyard for 10 years.  But as I recall shift change (at least in my world) was no earlier than 7-8 a.m. and the watering holes didn't open until at least 6.a.m. It usually took us at lesat until 9 a.m. to tie one on.Â
What must be lacking in the life of a person wandering around under the influence at 5:45AM. I really hope he gets the help he is obviously crying out for.
 @SoTweetie He may get off work at 3 am or this was his day off.
 @APenny4MyThoughts
 Doesn't change my opinion. I used to work graveyard and a non standard work week. Anyone out in public, intoxicated, alone, and falling off overpasses at that time- regardless of other factors- has serious problems controlling their life.Â
 @SoTweetie  @APenny4MyThoughts If you knew where it was, and how remote it is (especially because he was ON Hwy 18), you would find it even stranger!
 @APenny4MyThoughts
 It is the combination of all those things that create a picture of his life. Of course each circumstance on it's own could be justified.
I drove past this on the way in this morning, not something you see every day out here.Â
I was right behind the ladder when it responded to this earlier this a.m. I couldn't understand why the truck was going slow on the shoulder? Looking for what? I guess they found him. Hope he pulls through.
 @d_2 Was it over by 244th, headed toward Hobart?  Glad it wasn't worse and sounds like he'll be OK, but what a dangerous spot to be walking - it's DARK!
 @Doxie It's the overpass @ Taylor Creek & Hwy 18.
 @d_2 That's what I thought, quite near here.  What an odd place to be walking - drunk - though there are some homeless encampments nearby.  Thank you for clarifying.  You sure go to work early!