Philadelphia

Officers Climb Ben Franklin Bridge to Arrest Trespassers

Police plan to charge men with trespassing

Two men looking to take photos from one of the iconic bridges connecting Philadelphia and South Jersey wound up being the focus of an arrest high in the air.

Crews closed the Ben Franklin Bridge over the Delaware River for about 90 minutes early Tuesday after drivers reported seeing two men dressed in black and carrying backpacks climbing up the bridge, the Delaware River Port Authority said.

As officers focused lights on the bridge and worked to get to the men, the men laid down atop the span, DRPA said.

Four DRPA officers hooked themselves to the cable, carefully climbed the bridge and met the men on one of the 382-feet-tall towers, police said.

Officers then escorted the men -- one from Ohio the other from New York -- down an elevator, the DRPA said.

Police arrested the men and planned to charge them with trespassing.

A boat on the river and crews on the bridge assisted during the arrest.

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The bridge, built in 1922, is 8,300 feet long and about 135 feet above the river, according to the DRPA.

Correction: In an earlier version of this story, police identified the men as vandals but later said the men were there to take photos.

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