Earlier this week, a man who appeared to be under the influence of drugs crawled into the ceiling of a Southern California hospital and was unable to get out.
Police were called to San Antonio Regional Hospital in Upland around 9 p.m. Monday for a man who had broken through some of the ceiling tiles in the emergency room and was somewhere inside, the Upland Police Department posted Tuesday evening. Reported.
“The subject was determined to be a trespasser who appeared to be under the influence of drugs. When officers arrived on scene, surveillance footage showed the subject entering the bathroom and not coming out.” said the police.
Officers initially couldn’t see the man, and when they called for someone in the attic, there was no response.
On November 18, 2024, a man is seen impaled in the ceiling at San Antonio Regional Hospital in Upland. (Upland Police)
“Due to the extremely confined space and maze of electrical wires, plumbing, HVAC lines, etc., officers had to use pole cameras to peer into the ceiling. The subject soon found himself in a large HVAC unit. “It was located on top and pushed underneath,” the post reads, “There were steel beams in complete darkness.”
After the man finally decided to talk to police, the San Bernardino County Fire Department was called and told they were stuck and couldn’t get free.
Firefighters spent nearly an hour trying to remove the man from the ceiling and HVAC equipment.
“In all, the subjects caused more than $5,000 in damage to ceilings, electrical and air conditioning systems,” police said.
The unidentified man was arrested on a charge of felony criminal damage to property and booked into a local jail.
Police said emergency room staff continued to work around the incident and prevented any disruption to ER services.
