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NEWS
Man fell nearly 160 feet to his death
A man plunged 157 feet to his death from the Phyllis E. Given Memorial Bridge on Wednesday in Huntington.
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HUNTINGTON -- A man who fell 157 feet from a bridge over Interstate 64 Wednesday night has been identified as a 25-year-old Huntington resident.
Anthony J. Bailey was pronounced dead at the site of the fall near the 29th Street exit of Interstate 64 at approximately 9 p.m. Wednesday. According to a press release issued by the Barboursville Police Department, witness observations indicate Bailey fell nearly 160 feet from the Phyllis E. Given Memorial Bridge, a West Pea Ridge overpass, and landed in the westbound lanes of the interstate, where he was struck by traffic.
Initial reports Wednesday evening had the call being dispatched as an individual jumping from the bridge. Circumstances of the incident are undetermined at this time, according to Barboursville Police Chief Mike Coffey.
On the bridge, Cabell County Sheriff's deputies were directing traffic and searching the bridge wall for any evidence late Wednesday.
Brent Walker, director of communications for the West Virginia Department of Transportation, called Wednesday's event a "tragic incident." He said a safety fence was in place on the side of the bridge with a pedestrian walkway, but no fence is in place on the opposite side.
"We're still unclear as to what happened exactly," Walker said. "When we have overpasses with a walkway, we typically do provide some kind of safety fencing, but if we have a roadway with no walkway, those aren't meant for pedestrian traffic, so nothing is in place.
"I don't think anything has been discussed on that bridge or any of our thousands of overpasses to put safety fencing on both sides."
Bailey's body was transported by Wallace Funeral Home to St. Mary's Medical Center.
The incident remains under investigation.
