A WOMAN has been left with life-threatening injuries after falling 40ft from the roof of a block of flats in Old Market.
The woman, believed to be in her forties, is understood to have climbed up scaffolding and onto the roof of Albion Place, Lawford Street.
It is understood the woman, described as "vulnerable" by police, had been on the roof of the building – which is a block of council flats for elderly people – since 3am yesterday.
The section of road outside the flats was sealed off for most of the day.
Residents living in Albion Place and the surrounding flats said they first became aware of the woman on the roof when she started to remove slates and tiles and throw them onto the ground below.
Police negotiators were brought in and throughout the day tried to coax her down from the roof. It is also understood the woman's brother had tried to talk her down.
People living in Albion Place were told to stay inside where possible by officers.
Screams were heard at just after 4pm, when the woman is understood to have fallen from the roof.
Firefighters and ambulance teams, who had been on stand-by throughout the day, remained at the scene while a team of about a dozen police officers policed the cordon.
One resident, who did not want to be named, said: "I saw her climb up the scaffolding at around 3am and then she started to strip the roof so I called police."
Another resident, who lives at Lawford's Gate, came upon the drama when she arrived home at 8am after a night shift.
The resident, who did not want to be named, said: "She kept trying to go over the edge and she was crawling towards the edge of the roof.
"I have never seen anything like it and I just screamed."
A spokeswoman for Great Western Ambulance Service said: "A team of six paramedics were on the scene immediately to treat her.
"She was conscious and they stabilised her and took her straight to the Bristol Royal Infirmary."
A spokeswoman for Avon and Somerset police said: "We were called to Albion Place at 6am to a disturbed lady on the roof of the premises. Negotiators attended to try to bring her to safety and at around 4.10pm she fell. The woman in her 40s has been taken to hospital with serious injuries."
The road closure meant a number of bus services yesterday had to be diverted.
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