DOCTORS at Ipswich Hospital were today treating a man who threatened to commit suicide by jumping on to the A14 from a bridge.At one point the man was hanging by one hand from the A1071 flyover which spans the dual carriageway near the Copdock interchange.

DOCTORS at Ipswich Hospital were today treating a man who threatened to commit suicide by jumping on to the A14 from a bridge.

At one point the man was hanging by one hand from the A1071 flyover which spans the dual carriageway near the Copdock interchange.

The drama began when police were called to a house in Merlin Road, Ipswich, last night.

A relation of the man reported he had taken an overdose.

When officers arrived the 36-year-old had already left the house.

A search of the area ended with the man being found on the bridge around 11pm.

A Suffolk police spokeswoman today said: "He was seen to leave the house, heading towards London Road. The man was sighted at the bridge and an ambulance was called."

Both carriageways of the A14 were shut off between 11pm and 11.10pm while officers tried to persuade the man not to carry out his threat to jump after he had climbed over the parapet of the bridge.

Inspector Mike Hinshelwood, who was in charge of the Suffolk Police control room at the time of the incident, said: "At one point he was dangling by one hand above the carriageway."

The man was eventually detained by officers and treated at the scene by paramedics before being taken to hospital.

Elsewhere a Suffolk man was arrested after dousing himself with petrol and threatening to set himself on fire.

Police were called to an address in Bury Road, Great Livermere, at about 8.30pm yesterday following reports a 40-year-old "emotionally-disturbed" man who had threatened to burn the house down following an argument.

When police arrived, the man poured petrol over himself and threatened to set himself alight.

Inspector Hinshelwood said: "After a period of time, the man was subsequently arrested without suffering any injuries."