Police: Man Who Fell In Chimney Was Practicing Parkour
DENVER (CBS4) - A 26-year-old man who had to be rescued after falling in a Denver apartment building's chimney and getting stuck was practicing parkour with two others.
That's according to Denver police, who say Dustin Hinkle now faces a trespassing charge.
The incident happened Thursday afternoon near the intersection of 18th and Champa Street downtown. Denver firefighters and other rescuers had to cut through a wall after the man fell in what was described as an old incinerator chimney and slide more than 30 feet down.
They got him out and to the hospital approximately two hours later. His injuries were described as minor.
Parkour is an athletic activity done in urban areas. People who take part take urban structures like flower-planter boxes or park benches and transform them into problems that must be overcome with physical movement.
Hinkle was with Mary McHugh, 20, and Jayce Anderson, 23, when the incident happened. In addition to a trespassing charge, McHugh and Anderson each also face a charge of interference for allegedly not heeding police orders when they were trying to get away.
A witness who could see what was going on from her office window told CBS4 the group was acting strangely before Hinkle's fall.
"They were acting really sporadic, running around going down the stairs, they were in the alley, going back up the stairs, running back on the rooftop," said Carin Snell. "I've never seen anything like this before."