Many individuals have experienced an increase of depression, high anxiety and suicidal thoughts. These persons considering suciide may turn to the Golden Gate Bridge to act on their intentions to end their lives by jumping.
History of Suicide at the Golden Gate Bridge
The Golden Gate Bridge is historically known as one of the most frequented suicide destinations. Jumpers have a low survival rate and often died of impact trauma or drowning. An official count was kept until 1995 to be at about 1,000 until the Marin County coroner asked the media to stop keeping count.
Over 1,400 bodies have been recovered on the Bay side of the Golden Gate Bridge. Over the years, various attempts have been made to deter individuals from attempting suicide, such as Bridge Patrol, phones linking to suicide hotlines and even the erection of a suicide deterrent net.
Hope for Suicide Bridge Survivors
However, we’ve found that the most effective means of deterring suicide attempts is an individual, one-to-one connection. Personal connection with a supportive, caring individual can be just the connection that someone may need to find the hope to live.
A personal connection can not only put time and distance between the person considering suicide and their preferred means of suicide, but it also can provide lasting, meaningful intervention that shifts the person’s persepctive just enough to end the attempts long ago.
In fact there was a study in 1978 at the Golden Gate Bridge that showed that 90 percent of those who attempted jumping, went on to survive and didn’t end up committing suicide.
The Bridge Project believes in a 1-to-1 “plain-clothes” approach to suicide intervention.
Solutions to Prevent Suicide at the Golden Gate Bridge
Many solutions have been put in place as an attempt to prevent suicide at the Golden Gate Brige.
A Suicide Deterrent Net construction began in 2018 and is scheduled to be completed in 2023 according to the Golden Gate Bridge HIghway Transpritation District. However, intervention specialists are concerned that the deterrent net may drive potential jumpers to other means of suicide that are private, instead of a the public setting of the Golden Gate Bridge where they could possible receive the intervention support they need.
The Golden Gate Bridge Patrol officers are often willing to support and chat with anyone who is considering suicide or just needs support. There are also prevention hotlines and text lines such as the 24-hour San Francisco Suicide Prevention hotline to help.
The Bridge Project takes a unique approach to suicide intervention. People who are considering suicide often avoid bridge patrol, or may not ever reach out to a suicide intervention hotline, but our intervention specialists are dressed plainly and often blend in with tourists and other bridge visitors. This means that the Bridge Project is able to get closer in proximity to those who are preparing to end their lives on the Golden Gate Bridge in order to intervene during those critical moments.
