Golden Gate Bridge Suicide Prevention Net Approved

lorelei

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I just saw this story, I hadn't even heard that they were considering this but it just passed. They have decided to put up a net extending 25 feet out from the edge of the Golden Gate Bridge to prevent people from committing suicide by jumping off the bridge. There were other options that they were considering- different types of bars/railings (described in article) but this was the idea that passed. Not sure how it works exactly but it sounds like a good idea to me. Hopefully it saves some people.

http://www.ktvu.com/news/17621359/detail.html
SAN FRANCISCO -- Supporters of a suicide prevention barrier on the Golden Gate Bridge are hailing the bridge district's selection Friday of a net system under the bridge as the means to stop people from leaping to their deaths.
The bridge district board voted 14-1 this morning in favor of the net system that will cost between $40-$50 million and $78,000 a year to maintain.
 
Good. i think it's sad that they have to disturb the visual impact of the bridge but it is that sweeping visual (IMO) that makes people jump off of it. That and the infamy.

I hope those lost souls that went over the edge found their solace somewhere.
 
From the above linked article: "More than 1,200 have plunged to their deaths from the span since it opened in 1937. Thirty-eight people leaped last year and 19 have jumped so far this year, according to bridge officials."

So now people will need to go jump off a cliff somewhere nearby?

I live near Pittsburgh, PA, a city that has lots and lots of bridges due to having three large rivers - the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River meet to form the Ohio River within the city itself.

While we have the occasional bridge suicide, we having nothing anywhere near the amount listed for the Golden Gate Bridge.

Wonder why so many in San Francisco?
 
the bridge is famous for suicide. it's like a mecca for jumpers. let me see what else i can find out.
 
Oh wow.

All info taken from Wiki entry--
Link here:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Gate_Bridge


"An official suicide count was kept, sorted according to which of the bridge's 128 lamp posts the jumper was nearest when he or she jumped. The count exceeded 1,200 in 2005, and new suicides were averaging one every two weeks.[39] For comparison, the reported second most popular place to commit suicide in the world, Aokigahara Forest in Japan, has a record of 78 bodies, found within the forest in 2002, with an average of 30 a year.[40] There were 34 bridge-jump suicides in 2006 whose bodies were recovered, in addition to four jumps that were witnessed but whose bodies were never recovered, and several bodies recovered suspected to be from bridge jumps. The California Highway Patrol removed 70 apparently suicidal people from the bridge that year.[41] A person jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge every 15 days.[citation needed] An additional 200 may be added to the suicide count on the bridge, because of fog, night-time jumpers, and other jumps that couldn't be counted."

"The estimated cost of a barrier is between $40 and $50 million dollars."


Bold is mine. I can't help but feel that 40-50 million would be better served by increasing mental health services offered. I also can't help but think those suicides will merely go somewhere else as I think the decision of suicide is not thwarted by safety devices.
 
If a person wants to kill himself he/she will find a way to do it. I agree about the money being spent- it's a waste that could be used for services for people so they DON'T want to end it all.
 
I am sure there will be the thrill seekers using it for a thrill jumping. Does not sound like a good idea on one hand but good on the other. I am tore here.
 
If a person wants to kill himself he/she will find a way to do it. I agree about the money being spent- it's a waste that could be used for services for people so they DON'T want to end it all.

I agree with you that if someone wants to commit suicide they'll do it whether they have a bridge to jump off of or not. With that being said for some reason I think it's a good idea to put the netting up (if that makes any sense). Have any of you seen the movie "The Bridge"? It's a documentary of some of the people that have jumped. They have actual footage from the security cams. It's horrible. One man interviewed jumped and survived. He's so thankful now that he didn't die.
 
I think some people are undecided and depressed when they go to the bridge. The view is breathtaking and the waves below have a haunting beauty. It is very mesmerizing to onlookers. Some people who jump off hit the huge posts below or don't realize the pain of hitting the waves survivors have attested too. It's more like dying in an auto crash. I am glad the Golden Gate Bridge District is going to do this. It's about time. I know two people who ended their lives like this and I think it probably seemed to be an "easier" way.
 

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