RICHMOND, Va. --VCU Police won't say how far up a downtown parking deck a man was Friday, before he jumped.

One witness told me off-camera that on his way down the man hit tree branches, which may be what saved his life.

Police were looking closely at that tree, which reaches to about the third floor of the patient and visitor parking deck on Duval and 13th street.

"Breathtaking,” said Jill Graham, who had parked in the visitors’ deck. “I can't understand why someone would do that. Maybe they got bad news from their visit."

Around 4 p.m. Friday afternoon, police were called about a man that had jumped off the deck.

Eyewitnesses told me off-camera, that the man was rushed to VCU Medical Center a block away and that the tree helped break his fall. Sources told CBS-6 that a maintenance man happened to be covering for the parking deck attendant who had to use the restroom, and witnessed the man hitting the ground.

It's unclear if the man was a patient or someone visiting the hospital. VCU Police say they're investigating.

Graham was in the visitor deck after taking her mom to an appointment, and said police will have technology as well as witnesses to lean on to complete their investigation. "There are cameras everywhere in there, so if it happened like that it will be on video," Graham said.

We don't know the extent of the man’s injuries, but police confirm-they were not life threatening.