By Stefanie Bainum
sbainum@abcnews4.com
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) – Police have charged 38-year-old Phillip DeClemente with reckless driving. They say he caused danger to others by blocking lanes of traffic on the Ravenel Bridge Thursday afternoon.
College of Charleston student Porter Massey was driving over the bridge at that time as part of his regular Thursday routine -- a routine that turned in to anything but regular.
"I've been telling all my friends if you put Denzel Washington at the top of this bridge and a couple of more ambulances, it was like a Hollywood movie," Massey said.
Massey called 911 during the incident.
Police say Phillip DeClemente threatened to drive his vehicle off the bridge in a suicide attempt. Massey says DeClemente tried to drive him off the road while attempting to stop traffic.
"He began to blare the horn and moved his car closer to the right hand lane which is where I was coming by, hitting at the window," Massey said. "If a horn of a car could be angry that's exactly what his horn was. It was constant pounding of the horn and I could see him smacking at his window trying to get me to stop."
"It really freaked me out a little bit. It was scary. I immediately called 911 after that," he said.
It wasn't much longer before officials blocked off the northbound and southbound lanes of the bridge, creating a traffic nightmare around the Lowcountry. Authorities say it was the right thing to do.
"We were concerned not only about his safety but the safety of other motorists," said Charles Francis, public information officer for the Charleston Police Department. "He's in the vehicle and we have no idea what's in the vehicle with him. No idea."
Police say they were able to calm DeClemente down, and he peacefully surrendered. A police robot then inspected DeClemente's car. No explosives were found.
For Porter Massey, it was a trip over the bridge he'll never forget.
"I actually did make eye contact with this guy, which is one of the scariest things of this whole situation," Massey said. "It was a weird, weird cold feeling because I saw how angry he was at me, how angry he was."
Police say DeClemente was taken to MUSC for evaluation. Authorities say this is still an ongoing investigation.
Law enforcement officials blocked the bridge in both directions on Thursday as they worked to resolve the incident. (WCIV)
