A high-rise window cleaner in China survived a fall after his rope was cut by a resident who thought the rope belonged to a neighbor he had a feud with, according to local media reports.
The cleaner, surnamed Li, was suspended by a rope as he was waterproofing the exterior of a residential building in eastern China’s Jiangsu Province on April 2, several mainland Chinese news outlets reported.
The fifth floor resident, surnamed Tian, cut Li’s rope with a cleaver, the reports said, because Tian thought that the rope belonged to his neighbor whom he has a bad relationship with.
Li fell from the third floor of the 11-story building, but several metal installations outside the second floor window broke his fall. He only suffered minor injuries.
Tian is currently being investigated by the police, according to reports.
The Incident
Li, who was tasked with coating the building with waterproofing material, was working downwards from the 11th floor.
When Tian saw a rope outside of his window, reports said, he assumed it was being used by his neighbor on the sixth floor above him.
In many older buildings in China, building materials are often brought up by rope because of the narrow stairwells and lack of elevators.
Tian told Jiangsu-based media outlet Zero-Distance Videos that the neighbor was in the process of decorating their condominium.
“Stuff is always falling from their window,” Tian said.
“I have a really bad relationship with the person above me,” he added. “It’s a mess between us.”
As a way to take revenge on the neighbor, Tian grabbed a cleaver and sliced through the thick rope.
“I didn’t see anyone on the rope, so I cut it,” he said.
Li then fell from the third floor, as the rope was his only support. As he fell, he crashed into a welded metal frame outside the third-floor window. These frames are often used for hanging clothes or growing plants.
Li, along with the frame, then crashed into another metal frame directly below it. This frame, which was welded to a second-floor window, is used to prevent intruders from breaking into a home.
From the second-floor frame, Li fell down to the ground.
Li said he was knocked unconscious from the fall. He only suffered minor injuries.
The report said the police are now investigating the incident.
