Columbia man, 33, jailed after being brought down from power plant tower

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) -

Police say a 33-year-old Columbia man had to be rescued after he was seen throwing items from the window of a Municipal Power Plant tower Wednesday morning.

Richard D. Nichols was arrested on suspicion of burglary, property damage and resisting arrest, according to the Columbia Police Department. Information about charges was not available in online court records Wednesday afternoon.

First responders brought Nichols down from the power plant tower on Wednesday morning.

Multiple first responders were seen in the 1500 block of East Business Loop 70 on Wednesday morning after a man allegedly climbed one of the boilers of the Municipal Power Plant.

City spokesman Christopher Ave told ABC 17 News that officers were dispatched just after 6:30 a.m. about someone in a secure area of the power plant. Ave said the person was in a telecommunications facility in the power plant, about 150 feet in the air.

ABC 17 News arrived at the Municipal Power Plant just after 7 a.m. and saw a man sticking his head out of a window of a small enclosed area on the structure. The Columbia Police Department could be heard over a megaphone instructing the man to climb down. Ave said the main eventually left the area with police voluntarily just before 9 a.m.

Ave said the city is still investigating how the person, later identified publicly as Nichols, got into the plant and climbed the tower.

Columbia Utilities spokesman Jason West told ABC 17 News that the plant has staff working inside 24 hours a day. The plant used to burn coal for the city, but stopped doing so in 2015.

Nichols was on probation after pleading guilty to misusing 911, according to court records. He also has a history of trespassing, according to court records.

Nichols was in the Boone County Jail on Wednesday afternoon on a $4,500 bond, according to jail records.