LONDON – The London Eye — one of the city's main tourist attractions — was shut down for more than six hours Tuesday after a man scaled to the top of the 443-foot (135-meter) Ferris wheel, officials said.
The man — who London police believe may have been a protester — started ascending the wheel around 6:30 a.m. (530 GMT), and was talked down around six hours later.
The man's motivation for climbing was still unknown, Eye spokesman Joel Byron said, adding that the company resumed ticket sales once the man had come down.
It was not immediately clear how much business had been lost.
The man was later arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance, a police spokesman said on condition of anonymity in line with department policy.
About 18 million people have visited the Eye since its 2000 launch, and it was named the most iconic object of modern England in a January 2006 poll.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox