Seattle Shut Down For A Day By Man Climbing 80-foot Tree

A homeless man climbed Seattle's iconic sequoia tree and swayed high over the city, shutting down traffic while rescue crews put in efforts to bring him down.

At about 11 a.m. on Tuesday, a 911 call about the man who had scaled 80 feet drew the local authorities. It brought rescue crews rushing to the site, but he just shouted obscenities and threw pine cones and oranges at everyone.

The identity of the man is unknown. He was spotted with a beard and a red wool cap that fell on the street after a while. Many say that they have seen him in Seattle, and he is a homeless man. He seems to be posing a threat to his life as well as to the tree, as he was just pulling off the branches and throwing them about.

The "issue appears to be between the man and the tree," local authorities said on Twitter.

Both the man, who seems to be suffering a mental breakdown, as well as the tree, have been put in danger. Authorities are worried and are not able to rescue him. But on the other hand, they are also concerned about the tree, which has been towering over the city since the 1970s. A windstorm tore its upper 10 feet "clean off" 2006. A tree expert has been helping to feed it with some special emergency soil treatment.

But now the homeless man's presence is feared to be nailing its coffin. He is still on the tree and has not been rescued.

A live stream of the situation can be viewed here.