After Fence Goes Up, Police Still Getting Plenty of Suicide Calls on Aurora Bridge

I should add that this topic was the focus of perhaps the only truly excellent article The Stranger has ever published:

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=3997702

I don’t know who Brendan Kiley is, but I hope that article enabled him to get a real job with a real newspaper somewhere.

It is NOT a “suicide prevention fence.” As WSDOT states at the cited page, “A fence along the outer railing of the bridge will deter people from jumping off the bridge.”

The cops may not have specified what happened at each call, but don’t you figure the fact that they’re getting calls to go to the bridge, rather than to the pavement and water *below* the bridge, suggests the fence may be quite successful?

After all, the main goal of the bridge fence is to reduce suicide completions, not suicide attempts.

given that there are about 40 other places for people to jump no one can conclude this expenditure is successful by looking to reduced suicides or attempts on the aurora bridge alone.  you’d have to look at all suicide or attempts, across seattle.  and on ferries.  and so on and so on.  this kind of debate is often conducted by throwing numbers around, rarely are they definitive or even complete. then you get the inevitable response “ah but if even one life is saved….” which still doesn’t answer why then don’t we build 40 foot fences on every bridge and ferry — that might just might save even one life, too.  

you’re right, the City of Seattle has not solved the problem of suicide, which has been a part of human communities since the dawn of time.

but the fence there was never intended to prevent every suicide everywhere. it was meant to prevent suicides there, which impact the people below and the rest of the community a lot more than someone jumping off a ferry.

UNless the government spends every penny we have making sure no one in America ever dies, what’s the point?

Why not just put up smiley face signs then and save tax payers the expense of the fence?

Not bad. But what about Prozac dispensers? Or in these high unemployment times, have a therapist on each side of the bridge.  You might deter a suicide attempt with a fence but obviously you’re not really doing a lot to change someone’s suicidal thinking. There are other high bridges and other ways to do it.

Agreed.  A great piece.

Well, Kiley’s still there writing for them, so no.

That money could have been much better spent on mental health. 

I wish we had more details. I gather they’re trying to climb over the fence (with has spikes on top)? Are they succeeding? Are they not succeeding?

Honestly, they are giving people more of a reason to jump.. caging them in like animals when they are just trying to enjoy the view.. 

Here’s the problem with conservatives like yourself: you lack any sense of empathy.

This bridge is the #2 suicide jumping spot in the country. If people kept jumping to their death right in front of your home or business or your route home, I guarantee you’d think this fence was a wise use of public money.

Similarly, Dick Cheney, with a lesbian daughter, is suddenly a gay marriage supporter. Nancy Reagan, having lived through alzheimer’s with her husband, is suddenly a stem cell research advocate. It seems conservatives only develop compassion when they or their family is impacted by something.

When will you make the empathy leap? When will you be able to say, “Though this problem is not impacting me directly, it is impacting some people. And if it were impacting me, I would want something done about it; thus, because it is impacting other people, basic fairness says I still think something should be done about it.”

Yeah, the crisis hotlines and such are there to reduce suicides overall, the fence is there to reduce suicide AT THAT LOCATION. I’m sure they’re aware that many people who are committed to killing themselves will just do so elsewhere, but it’s very likely that they’ll do so somewhere that is less traumatic for those nearby and less costly for the city.

After reading the Stranger article linked below, there’s also this quote: “A 2005 article in Psychiatric News says some jumpers aren’t
necessarily depressed or chronic suicide attempters—sometimes people are
simply overwhelmed by a sudden desire to leap—and that thwarted jumpers
rarely go on to kill themselves in other ways.”

So maybe it actually would reduce suicides by a small amount, too. Bonus.

One indirect benefit of the fence is that it makes Aurora Bridge feel safer to walk and bicycle across. The previous fence was scary low, especially from the elevated seat of a bicycle. It’s still a very narrow place, with ugly traffic crossing on each end. But I’m less afraid of accidental death when I bike or walk across. And hopefully more foot and bicycle traffic on the bridge will decrease the chances of suicide, or increase the chance of a helping hand being there in a time of crisis.

A blanket or heavy coat would easily overcome the spikes. 

Apparently you think the problem to be addressed is this particular bridge…

The fence was built to prevent suicides, which were disrupting business at Adobe and upsetting the neighborhood. The suicide fence was an all around a smart project that will more than pay for itself. Think of the lost tax revenue from businesses relocating.

I don’t have any issue with this particular bridge. My point is that the people who live below it do. They are continually harmed by the threat of jumpers, and frequently harmed by actual jumpers.

And I’m willing to acknowledge that preventing jumpers there, or even minimizing those incidents there, is in the public interest, even if it’s not in my own personal interest.

Yes, like I5 at Pine/Olive overpass onto passing cars on I5.  Two w/in the last 6 or so months.  Much less traumatic.

are you disagreeing just to disagree?

yes, at the rate you cite, there would be four jumpers at your overpass a year. there have already been 28 in 10 months on the Aurora bridge. even by your own (most likely made up) statistics, it makes sense to prioritize Aurora.

I know you have a knee-jerk disagreement with anything government does, but really, what’s the point of your contrarian viewpoint here?

It is kind of hard to see its value unless they publish absolute numbers pre/post fence.

And if it becomes a trend, maybe we’ll do something about that overpass too. It’d certainly be much less costly than the Aurora bridge. The thing is that certain areas build up a reputation as being “the place to go” to commit suicide, and the Aurora bridge has that reputation. As far as I know, nowhere else has such a reputation in Seattle. Maybe somewhere else will become the new spot to kill yourself, but until we have actual evidence you’ll have to hold your tongue. Two incidents does not a trend make.

They should man up and stop living in Fear.

Fount – my point of disagreement:  If someone is going to kill themselves, they will still do it.  We can build fences from hell to breakfast, that will not make the suicide rate in this city go down.  In this case the trauma transferred from the houseboats under Aurora to the Volvos  on I5.

Oh and Fount since you no me so well, I thought I would point out that I am not knee jerking w/ the decision to evict Occupy, so you have no basis for your generalization of me.  But it’s cute.

If you mean psychological harm, I agree. However, I don’t believe anyone below has ever been physically harmed, let alone “frequently.”

why be so snarky?  true human and moral response has to include basic cost benefit, maybe this $1.5 million would have saved more lives if spent another way, what, those lives don’t count?

are you seriously saying this was just a way to enhance livability in this one neighborhood, it’s there to push suicides to the ferries?  because there they’re in the water, and cheaper to clean up?

wow, how cruel. 

um, the story says suicide calls which is just people loitering, not 28 jumpers.  Get some real data then we’ll talk.

The problem is they only spent $1.5 million dollars on this. Surely we’re going to need to spend a lot more money to prevent suicide in Seattle. We need four Seattle Police officers (two at each end on opposite sides) and a full time social worker, skilled in crisis prevention, present at all times. Of course supplemental training will be necessary in addition to their salary and benefits package.

Finally, Seattle will be a progressive, suicide free city. Isn’t one life is worth all this expense?

Has there ever anytime, anywhere been a “suicide free city”? Are you serious? I’m in favor of liberal spending on mental health services, but I think solving poverty and injustice (unequal weatlh & income, medical care, etc.) would be more effective in the long run.

until someone gives the total suicide data pre and post fence and the total suicide data at aurora pre and post fence we don’t have even the most basic, simple data we’d want to judge whether or not this fence produced a benefit.  we know it has a cost.  we also know there’s 400 other neighborhoods that would like more ameneties and 500 other ways to sto or prevent suidices all of which need money too.  so until we have that data, we’re just venting our prejudices and feelings and in some posts, trying to claim higher morality (“when will the empathy come, you psychopath you!”).  It’s a legit question was this fence worth it.  that we talk about it with thte most basic data only shows most are not into a real debate but merely wish to reinforce aspects of their persona.

The post was facetious.

$1.5 million is a ridiculous amount of money to spend on something that does nothing to fix the problem. If someone wants to commit suicide they are not going to let a modification to a bridge stop them.

Wasn’t this project $7 million? Or are you speaking about an addition or something? Please clarify. Thanks!

OK, sorry it went over my humorless head.

I believe most of the people living in those house boats are near 1%-ers, or at least 5%-ers.

Or simply not spent (aka. wasted).

Maybe they should toll cyclists crossing then?

“Think of the lost tax revenue from businesses relocating.”
No doubt you think we should raise taxes on Boeing and MSFT though.

Anyone know why Getty Images is relocating to the International District?