The Tower Hill Lookout remains closed to the public following an incident on March 29.
According to officials, a person climbed on top of the tower and firefighters had to cut a hole in the roof of the structure in order to get them down safely.
Dave Thompson, fire chief for the Parry Sound fire department, said firefighters from Carling, Seguin, McDougall and Parry Sound were involved in the rescue, along with police and EMS personnel.
During an April 2 town council meeting, he expressed concerns over the interactions emergency crews had with the public.
“There were not aggressive confrontations, but (people were) more confrontational than necessary,” said Thompson.
“It’s unfortunate. The firefighters were trying (to keep the public away from the scene) for everyone’s safety…and for the privacy of everyone involved, and yet there was still pushback from the public.”
Thompson also mentioned that emergency personnel flying a drone over the scene had to deal with various other drones. He voiced disappointment in the public’s “disregard for emergency operations that were going on.”
Mayor Jamie McGarvey also expressed disappointment in the public’s apparent lack of respect for emergency crews on scene.
“The public needs to understand that when a situation like this happens, they need to back off and let the people who are doing the work that needs to be done, do it,” he said.
“People don’t realize that when somebody does something like this, the cost that is there and the lives that are in jeopardy. It really can become a very tenuous and severe situation.”
The structure has been assessed by municipal officials, and work is being done to try repair the damage so the tower can be re-opened.
A West Parry Sound OPP investigation into the incident is ongoing.