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Person safely rescued after climbing transmission tower in Charlotte, police say

Duke Energy confirmed that approximately 1,000 customers were experiencing outages after the power was cut.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Law enforcement responded after a person climbed on an electrical transmission tower in southwest Charlotte.

Officials say the situation has come to a safe and successful conclusion. The person who climbed the tower is now down and is being checked out by medical staff.

The Charlotte Fire Department said it responded to the incident on West Woodlawn Road and Wallingford Street around 2:30 p.m. 

WCNC Charlotte was at the scene where crews are working to rescue the person on the tower.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department confirmed power had been shut off in the area.

Duke Energy confirmed that approximately 1,000 customers were experiencing outages after the power was cut through the Woodlawn location. The outages have since been restored.

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"The control center is working to rerouting electricity to these customers so their service can be restored as soon as possible," Duke Energy said in a statement.

CMPD says during the incident, a drone was flying near the man and the high-voltage lines on the towers. Officials say the person operating the drone was found and is under investigation for interfering with police and "life-saving rescue operations" on Sunday. 

The department is reminding all drone operators to learn and follow FAA drone regulations, licensing and guidelines prohibiting the use of drones near Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, restricted utilities and public safety operations.

 CMPD is also reminding people that utility towers and power poles operated by Duke Energy are private people and people should not climb on or near the equipment due to the risk of electrocution. 

Duke Energy, along with CMPD and Charlotte Fire Department responded to the scene.

WCNC Charlotte has reached out to officials regarding this incident but has not responded yet. Check back here as this story develops.

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