Fire Dept convinces man to climb down from tower after 30 hours

A man who climbed a 150-metre telecommunications tower in Bukit Mamaloh in Kanowit, Sarawak, and stayed up there for more than 30 hours since early yesterday, finally came down at 3.51pm today.

Kanowit Fire and Rescue Station chief Arrahman Chik said two fire and rescue personnel had earlier gone to the location to persuade the man, identified as a 35-year-old Indonesian, to come down.

“Upon arriving at the tower, the man was calmed down by police and fire and rescue personnel. He was later taken by the police for further action,” he said when contacted by Bernama.

The man, who worked as a carpenter, shocked locals yesterday morning as he climbed the telecommunications tower after a disagreement with his colleagues.

An attempt to persuade him to get down was started by a team of police who arrived at the scene at about 8am, but failed, before a team from the fire and rescue station was also called in to assist.

They were initially unable to persuade the man, who allegedly threw hard objects at them, causing them to temporarily suspend the operation before resuming today, and finally succeeding in the afternoon.

- Bernama