A WOMAN threatening to jump off a busy flyover brought traffic chaos to Bournemouth's roads yesterday afternoon at the start of the Bank Holiday weekend.

Even ambulances trying to access the Royal Bournemouth Hospital's accident and emergency department had to be diverted, causing delays. The area below the Cooper-Dean flyover on the Wessex Way was cordoned off to traffic and pedestrians, and diversions put in place.

With slip roads at Queen's Road, Springbourne and Richmond Hill blocked, traffic jams quickly built up on the dual carriageway back to County Gates and into Poole.

Surrounding roads also ground to a halt.

The drama created tailbacks of at least three miles and motorists clogged minor roads to avoid the congestion.

The woman, who is thought to have been receiving treatment at St Ann's Hospital in Poole, was seen by one witness getting out of a car on the flyover. She then sat down on the parapet, dangling her legs over the 40ft drop.

Police officers arrived at the scene quickly and closed off the northbound carriageway of the Wessex Way. As a trained negotiator approached to try and coax the woman to safety, she shouted at him incoherently.

The woman was eventually persuaded to leave her perch at 4.22pm, an hour-and-a-half after the police had first been alerted. Sixteen officers had been involved in dealing with the incident, and it took another hour for the traffic to ease.

A spokeswoman said: "A person was threatening to commit suicide, but was brought down safely and taken off for treatment. The traffic was completely gridlocked, causing chaos.

"Buses, taxis and the emergency services were warned to stay away from the area and it caused the ambulances a few problems. There was a huge number of officers involved and we had an accident in Holdenhurst Road at the same time."

Aaron Launder, 16, said: "We saw a car on the bridge. A woman stopped and let her out of the car. We saw her sitting on the bridge - there were lots of people standing and looking."