Jun 5, 2008 8:45 pm US/Central
2nd Person Scales Wall Of NY Times Building
Earlier, 'French Spiderman' Mounted 52-Story Building Before Being Arrested
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
For the second time today, a man was climbed the 52-story wall of the New York Times building.
The man, wearing a white t-shirt and orange pants, was climbing the wall on the west side of the building by Eighth Avenue. He was said to be unaffiliated with the famous daredevil who scaled the building earlier in the day.
He did not appear to be secured into any type of rope or bungee cord as he made his way up.
It appears the man was growing tired as he continued up, taking breaks as he clung to the wall, occasionally pulling his arms back as if to stretch them out.
Police were awaiting the man's arrival atop the building.
Shortly after noon, Frenchman Alain Robert scaled the 52-stories of the New York Times building without a rope or anything securing him except for his own arms and legs. The world-renowned climber, worked his way up the walls of the tower at 620 8th Ave. at 41st Street without any assistance.
"He didn't have a belt or anything! He just kept going up and up and I thought, oh my goodness," said witness Sarah Tucker.
That was the thought of those inside offices as they saw Robert, 46, scale past their floors all the way to the top. From the ground, all eyes aimed at the skies.
"He just kept on walking up like that way almost up to the end. Walking up like he was Spiderman," said Sarita Garcia.
Along the way, spidey left a message he wanted the world to see in the form of a banner that read, "Global Warming Kills More People Than 9/11 Every Week."
"He's trying to make sure that people get the message that we need to take action calling attention to himself for the cause," said Robert's manager, Julia Cohen.
As Robert headed to the top, rescuers were called in to help but the building itself got in the way. Around 12:20 the man was taken in by authorities on a steel beam atop the building. When he arrived on the beam, he stood up and waved his arms in the air victoriously.
Robert used the building's lattice like a ladder all the way to the top where police were waiting with harnesses and handcuffs.
"Once he got to the top, they just grabbed him and he walked in. He wasn't resisting or anything," said witness Artie Berkey.
This isn't the first time Robert has caught the attention of New Yorkers. In 1994, he climbed the Calico building, then five years later, it was the Sears tower. Last year in London, it was an office tower. Just this April, he climbed another building in Hong Kong. Now, the New York Times building has it's own place in Robert's aerial acrobatics and New Yorkers have something else to shake their heads about.
According to Robert's Web site, he's scaled over 70 skyscrapers in eight years and says his greatest feat was "the ascent of the National Bank of Abu Dhabi with over 100,000 spectators!"
His Web site also says he climbs even though he suffers from vertigo and is "60 percent disabled" from previous accidents. It says he has been jailed many times but it does not matter because he "would rather stay in a prison than in a hospital."
One city councilman is hoping that Robert gets to know what the inside of a New York City jail looks like.
"Regardless of the cause, in this day and age the police department has more important things to worry about then ridiculous stunts like this that endanger the police and public," said Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. "If he wants to climb something, he can climb the walls inside his jail cell at Rikers."
The New York Times building opened last year and is surrounding by an impressive steel and glass shutter-like frame.
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