UPDATED: Former Employee of Rockland Co. Dept. of Mental Health Takes Off Pants, Lets Go of Rope, After Dangling Off Tappan Zee Bridge [VIDEO]

Update: The man let go of the rope on purpose or accidentally fell into the water around 2 p.m., according to The Nation’s Greg Mitchell. He landed in water or on the deck of barge and was taken to police barracks, Mr. Mitchell reports. The man’s condition is unknown, but NBC New York reports the man fell in the water, not on the barge. Right now he’s on an emergency worker’s boat, according to Gothamist. Before jumping he also took off his pants, apparently, and tried to swim away but emergency workers gave him a life preserver, which he took.

Occupy Wall Street might have to step up their protesting efforts. A man is currently dangling off the Tappan Zee Bridge, protesting his termination at a mental health facility Rockland County. Michael Davitt is clinging to a banner that’s tied to a van blocking traffic on the bridge over the Hudson River, occasionally taking sips from a thermos. The banner reads “ROCKLAND EXECUTIVE LEGISLATURE COVER UP RETALIATION,” and Patch reports his car has closed one lane.

Emergency crews are gathering in three boats below the bridge in Tarrytown. They don’t seem to know what to do.

Mr. Davitt is a Rockland County resident who has alleged during several county council meetings he wrongfully lost his job, Rockland County Sheriff James Kralik told Patch. Mr. Davitt has apparently been conducting one-man protests in front of the Rockland County Office Building in New City and has spoken several times to the Rockland County Legislature. Sheriff Kralik also told patch his comments to the Legislature were “somewhat threatening.” Before losing his job, Mr. Davitt worked for the Department of Mental Health at Rockland County’s health complex in Pomona. Do we need to point out the irony?