Safety nets drape the Golden Gate to prevent suicide. In El Paso teams are ready to help.
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) — Along the Golden Gate Bridge today, if you look over the side, you will find steel nets extending a total of 20-feet from the structure. They're the latest safety improvement to the bridge to offer suicidal individuals a second chance — trying to catch the hundreds of people who attempt suicide along it each year.
While this bridge is one of the most famous sites for suicide attempts, suicide by jumping is a concern from tall buildings, overpasses and other high places. Many experts say jumping suicides are not common, but they are not rare.
ABC-7's dedicated mental health correspondent spoke with experts in suicide and mental health crisis response in El Paso to discuss how situations are handled, what training is performed and what care is available during and after an attempt.
See it tonight on ABC-7 at 10 p.m.
Avery Martinez covers mental health in the Borderland as part of ABC-7’s Be Mindful initiative. He is also a Report for America corps member. RFA places talented, emerging journalists in newsrooms like ABC-7’s to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America is an initiative of The GroundTruth Project, an award-winning nonprofit journalism organization dedicated to rebuilding journalism from the ground up.
