Interstate 279 was shut down near McKnight Road for an hour Saturday while firefighters rescued a North Side woman who had threatened to leap from an overpass above the busy roadway, Ross police said.

Police arrived on scene shortly after 3 p.m. to find the woman perched on Perrysville Avenue, which runs over the interstate between Connie Drive and Ivory Avenue in Ross. WIthin 15 or 20 minutes of their arrival, she told them she did not want to jump, but she was positioned precariously and had to be rescued by firefighters.

Firefighters from the Berkley Hills Fire Department positioned their truck underneath the overpass and raised their truck ladder to reach her. The interstate reopened around 4 p.m.

She was brought down unhurt, but was committed to a local hospital while she received a psychiatric evaluation.

First Published: January 2, 2011, 5:00 a.m.