The Durango Police Department responded to a call on Saturday about man experiencing suicidal ideations and threatening to blow up Olde Tymers Cafe.
Dispatch received the call about 5:30 p.m. from someone at the restaurant concerned about the man’s erratic behavior, said Sgt. Padraic Ingle of the Durango Police Department. DPD evacuated Olde Tymers and shut down the 1000 block of Main Ave.
For help
Help for people having suicidal thoughts or for those who fear a person is considering suicide:
Axis Care Hotline:
24/7 local response to your crisis & behavioral health needs: (970) 247-5245
NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION HOTLINE:
(800) 273-TALK (8255) or text “TALK” to 741741
RED NACIONAL DE PREVENCIÓN DEL SUICIDIO:
(888) 628-9454
FORT LEWIS COLLEGE COUNSELING CENTER:
247-7212
BOYS TOWN HOTLINE:
(800) 448-3000.
SAFE2TELL COLORADO:
(877) 542-7233 or safe2tell.org
COLORADO CRISIS SUPPORT LINE:
(844) 493-8255 or text “TALK” to 38255 or online at coloradocrisisservices.org to access a live chat available in 17 languages. The line has mental-health professionals available to talk to adults or youths 24 hours a day.
AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR SUICIDE PREVENTION:
Colorado chapter information available at afsp.org/chapter/afsp-colorado/
FOR MEN:
A website for adult men contemplating suicide is available at mantherapy.org
DPD would not release any information about the man or whether he was affiliated with the restaurant. He was unarmed, and once officers realized he wasn’t carrying a weapon, they forced their way into Olde Tymers and made the arrest.
“We safely took him into custody and then he went to the hospital for mental evaluation,” Ingle said.
Durango Fire Protection District responded to make sure building was safe from explosive gases.
Authorities were concerned the man was breaking pilot lights on kitchen appliances and letting gas seep out into the building because of statements he had made inside the restaurant.
Firefighters found kitchen appliances with broken pilot lights but evidence was inconclusive as to whether they had been tampered with or if it was general wear and tear.
Upon arriving at the scene, DPD contacted Atmos Energy to turn off the building’s gas. There was no indication that the man was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time he was taken into custody.
The building was deemed safe by 7:30 p.m.
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