When Kwame Anderson and his co-worker saw a man clutching the outer fence of the Earl Street bridge over Interstate 94, Anderson jumped out of the truck he was riding in.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Anderson asked the man. “If you’re thinking of jumping, you don’t have to jump.”

But the man told Anderson, “You don’t know me, you don’t care. Why are you trying to save me?” the 29-year-old recalled later Wednesday. Anderson responded, “If I didn’t care I wouldn’t be here right now.”

St. Paul police officers assembled, and the Minnesota State Patrol and St. Paul fire department closed eastbound I-94 in the area about 7:50 a.m. Wednesday.

Anderson — who’s a comedian and by day a beer salesman — said he didn’t know what to do, but he pictured actor Denzel Washington when he played a negotiator in “Inside Man.” He figured he needed to build rapport with the man and he kept talking to him.

He asked the man for his name and learned he was originally from Chicago.

“He said, ‘Chicago’s tough,’ ” Anderson said. “I said, ‘I grew up on the East Side of St. Paul, in the hood just like you.’ ”

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The conversation continued and Anderson asked what he needed: Was he hungry? Did he need money?

The man said no to both.

Then, Anderson asked, “If you come down from there, do you want to get a drink with me and talk about what’s going on?”

Anderson ran to the truck, grabbed a case of beer, opened it and told him, “I have a pack of Coors Light for you. Follow me.’ ”

The man inched across the bridge to safety. He didn’t get a drink because paramedics took him to Regions Hospital for evaluation.

Anderson, who does stand-up shows, said he hopes he can connect with the man later.

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Jason Gaebel, who has worked for BreakThru Beverage for 19 years, was driving the beer truck where Anderson was a passenger. Gaebel initially shouted over to the man to ask if he was alright and encouraged him to come back to the other side of the bridge.

While Gaebel said he’s not a religious man, he believes “God has everything to do with this” because they were taking a route they wouldn’t normally travel on Wednesday morning.

Sgt. Mike Ernster, a St. Paul police spokesman, credited Anderson and officers with making a difference on Wednesday morning.

“Beer has been bringing people together for a long, long time,” Ernster said. “Today, it brought people together in a life-saving way.”

FOR HELP

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 800-273-TALK (8255). Additional information is at save.org.