PERU, Ind. — An Indiana man who livestreamed his deliberation about whether to jump off a bridge Monday was pulled to safety by police before he could make the decision to harm himself.

Sgt. Samantha Raber of the Peru, Indiana, Police Department was on a traffic stop Monday evening when a family member approached her to report she had seen a livestream on Facebook of her brother sitting on a bridge on a nearby street, contemplating jumping into the Wabash River, according to Peru Police Chief Mike Meeks.

Raber, along with Officers Colten Pitner and Shawn Swinford, arrived on scene and saw the man sitting on the railing of the bridge with his feet hanging over toward the water.

The officers blocked off traffic to the bridge and began talking with the man, who said he was having personal issues with his family.

The man went from being somewhat calm to extremely agitated as people watching the livestream on Facebook sent him messages imploring him to get off the bridge, while others taunted him and encouraged him to jump, Meeks said.

Officers continued to speak with the man for around 15 minutes, trying to convince him not to jump. Finally, as the man’s attention was drawn to his phone and his Facebook feed, Officer Swinford came up from behind him and pulled him to safety.

The man was handcuffed and transported to a local hospital for an evaluation.

Meeks told the Kokomo, Indiana Tribune the incident was the first time his officers have responded to an event being streamed live on the internet. He said the recent trend of people streaming dangerous, tragic or illegal situations is a double-edged sword for law enforcement.

“In this case, since he livestreamed it, it may have saved his life,” he said. “It brought attention to the fact that he was there in that situation in the first place.

“Initially, that was a good thing,” Meeks said. “But then again, people watching could have seen a tragic event happen right before their eyes. I think we’ve become immune to that because of what we see on TV and video games.”

He said no charges would be filed against the people who encouraged the man to jump from the bridge because there is no Indiana law against it.

In the end, Meeks praised the officers on scene for their handling of the incident and ensuring it ended without tragedy.

“They were able to talk to the man and keep him from making a decision to jump,” he said in a press release. “And the actions of Officer Swinford were heroic. He risked his life, and the potential of going in the river as well, to save the life of another.”

Gerber writes for the Kokomo, Indiana Tribune.