Police are continuing to block off the area around 300 East Main Street in downtown Carrboro this morning, as negotiators are still talking with a man who’s threatening to jump from the roof of the Hampton Inn.

This situation has been ongoing since 3:00 yesterday afternoon.

“We initially came out here as a response to a suspicious person call on the roof of the Hampton Inn,” says Carrboro police captain Chris Atack. “Officers, once they arrived on the scene, made contact with an individual on the roof (and) became concerned for his safety.”

Listen to more comments from Atack, as well as WCHL’s Matt Oakes and Art Chansky, who were on the scene Tuesday.

Working with Chapel Hill Police, Orange County EMS and the Carrboro Fire Department, officers closed East Main Street, West Franklin Street, and West Rosemary Street from Roberson Street in Carrboro to Merritt Mill Road in Chapel Hill. Those streets remain closed even now, and traffic on all three streets is being diverted.

Police are not releasing details yet about the man’s identity or the exact nature of the standoff, but Atack says there’s no danger to the public.

“We do actually have trained negotiators involved,” he says. “We have at least three negotiators involved, from the Carrboro and Chapel Hill negotiations unit.”

Those negotiators, he says, have been in contact with the individual since around 3:30 Tuesday afternoon.

The situation has been ongoing for more than 12 hours now, and police still can’t say how much longer it will be – but they say they’ll stay out as long as it takes.

“We’re committed to bringing this to the best resolution we can think of,” Atack says.

Stay tuned to WCHL for updates throughout the morning. For traffic purposes, avoid downtown Chapel Hill and Carrboro if possible; traffic has been heavily backed up since yesterday afternoon.

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