Harrowing body-camera videos tell the tale of a dramatic rescue 30 stories up on a Brooklyn high-rise in early May. A woman in the midst of an apparent mental health crisis made her way to the terrace of the towering building, where she climbed over a glass partition and was precariously sitting on the roof’s edge. In a calm and comforting approach, New York Police Department officers initiated and maintained communication, convincing her to allow them to hold her arm. Simultaneously, officers from the NYPD Emergency Services Unit arrived and geared up in safety harnesses and ropes so they could climb over the partition and get closer to the woman. All the while, the officers reassured her they were there to help.

“It was definitely a heart-wrenching visual to see this woman in crisis on the ledge. And my initial reaction was to just kind of rush towards her, to try to grab her and pull her back to safety. But I had to stop myself and revert to my training, because there’s a possibility that if we had to rush towards her, it could have triggered her to jump,” Officer Phillip Aban told amNewYork.

Their training prevailed. The woman agreed to climb back to safety and was transported to a hospital.