101 Freeway Reopens As Man Surrenders After 10-Hour Standoff; Miles-Long Traffic Nightmare Eased – Update

UPDATED, 10:40 AM: The 101 Freeway has reopened in both directions after a man who had threatened to jump from an overpass finally surrendered after 10 hours. Police took him into custody without incident at 9:40 a.m. after authoiries began cutting a hole in a fence in an effort to reach him. Traffic in the area, which had been backed up for miles, has returned to normal.

PREVIOUSLY, 8:50 AM: LA’s 101 Freeway remains closed at Hollywood Boulevard, more than eight hours after a potential jumper forced the shutdown, causing traffic to be backed up for miles. The California Highway Patrol is advising drivers to avoid the area.

All northbound and southbound lanes were shut down shortly after midnight, according to Brian Humphrey of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

“There is a potential jumper, and it’s been going on all night,” Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Officer Drake Madison told Patch. “They are just trying to bring this guy down so he doesn’t hurt himself.”

Northbound drivers are being taken off at Hollywood Boulevard, and southbound traffic is being diverted at Sunset Boulevard. Helicopter footage from local TV stations shows northbound traffic backed up to the 110 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. On the southbound side, traffic slows just before Barham Boulevard in the Hollywood Hills. The shutdown also is affecting surface streets surrounding the freeway.

There’s no estimate on when the lanes will reopen. Here’s how the freeway traffic map looked as of 9:15 a.m. Tuesday: