'Very drunk' woman charged with jumping off Maryland drawbridge

Brooke North, 39, is facing several charges after jumping off a drawbridge in Maryland. (Ocean City Police Department)

A “very drunk” woman sparked a massive search after she jumped off a Maryland drawbridge Sunday, police said.

The Coast Guard and Maryland Natural Resources Police were dispatched to a bridge on Route 50 in Ocean City at about 9:20 p.m. Sunday night after reports that a woman had jumped.

Authorities searched for the woman for several hours, dispatching boats and a state police helicopter to the area. They were unsuccessful in locating anyone in the water or along the shoreline, the Daily Times of Salisbury reported.

But at 11:26 p.m., police were called by passers-by to a gravel parking lot to report “what appeared to them to be a highly intoxicated female, in a bikini, stumbling around,” court documents said.

Witnesses also told police the woman had fallen down on her face.

Police identified the woman as 39-year-old Brooke North, of Ocean City, who was seen “staggering towards the road and appeared to have poor balance.”

North reportedly told officers that she was “very drunk” and had jumped off the bridge because “she just likes swimming and wanted to get away,” court documents stated. She said she’d washed up on the rocks.

While speaking to the officers, North also randomly started yelling at passing vehicles, police said.

North was arrested and charged with being intoxicated in a public place and causing a disturbance. She was also charged with disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace for jumping off the bridge. She’s posted $5,000 bail.