Each year, around 135 people in NYC jump to their death.

Suicide is a public health epidemic that causes immeasurable suffering for individuals, families, and communities. In the United States, suicide is the 11th leading cause of death, ranking 3rd for those ages 10-24 and 25-44. Since 2000, rates of suicide have increased by over 30%, resulting in 49,476 deaths in 2022 alone. From 2010 to 2019, New York City witnessed an average suicide count of 543 per year. While the stigma of mental illness has been greatly reduced in recent years, and mental health treatment has become more available, suicide ideation still often goes undetected. Only an estimated 46% of people who die by suicide were diagnosed with a mental health condition. Increased access to quality mental health care is essential, but a combination of approaches is necessary to eliminate suicide.

Suicide by jumping is 10 times more common in NYC than in the United States as a whole.

While New York City’s suicide rate is only half of the national average (6.1 per 100,000 compared to 13.9), the prevalence of suicide by jumping is much higher, accounting for 25% of suicides. Research shows that people choose a suicide method based on lethality and availability, therefore suicide by falling is more common in major metropolitan areas. New York City is full of high-rise buildings and well-known jumping sites.  The public nature of these locations and subsequent media coverage may lead to “suicide contagion,” thus popularizing a location as a “suicide hotspot”. NYC has become known for “suicide tourism,” with 10% of suicides in Manhattan involving non-residents, for whom jumping is the most common method. Places such as The Vessel, which was forced to close to the public after four suicides by jumping, show us there is a pressing need for design that considers and mitigates the risk of suicide.

Suicide by jumping is highly lethal, resulting in death 85% of the time.

The lethality of jumping as a method of suicide makes it an urgent method to target for intervention. Where there is a higher likelihood of death, there is a higher potential for lives saved. Not only is the method highly lethal, but it can endanger the lives of people below, traumatize witnesses, and result in significant property damage.

24% of suicide attempts occur within 5 minutes of deciding to complete suicide. 48% occur within 10 minutes.

For many, the period of high suicide risk is short, creating a small window of opportunity for life-saving intervention. In a study of nearly-lethal suicide attempt survivors, one in four survivors attempted suicide only five minutes after making the decision. In a similar study, nearly half of suicide attempt survivors described attempting suicide less than ten minutes after the emergence of suicidal thoughts. Raising the rails can create a physical barrier between a person and death, delaying them through this high-risk period and creating a greater opportunity for survival and intervention.

Means Safety, defined as reducing access to the objects, items, or environments (“means”) that people use to die by suicide, lowers suicide rates overall.

In the 1950’s, the #1 method for suicide in the UK was carbon monoxide poisoning. After a change from toxic coal gas to nontoxic natural gas for domestic cooking, suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning rates fell dramatically, in addition to an overall reduction of suicide rates by a third. Similarly, Sri Lanka saw a 70% decrease in suicides after banning a few hazardous pesticides in the late 1990’s. Today, states with fewer guns and stricter gun laws have not only fewer suicides by guns, but fewer suicides overall. Means Safety works, especially for highly lethal suicide methods. With the sometimes impulsive nature of suicide, Means Safety is crucial for preventing impulsive, irreversible acts.

Installation of physical barriers has been proven to significantly reduce suicides by jumping.

Means Safety has proven to be effective for preventing suicides by jumping, most commonly in the form of bridge barriers. In Washington D.C., suicide deaths from the Ellington Bridge were reduced by 90% after the installation of barriers. Installing barriers or nets suicide hotspot bridges in Switzerland lead to a nearly 70% reduction in suicides at these sites. More recently, a suicide barrier net was constructed along the Golden Gate Bridge, a location that typically sees an average of 30 suicides every year. Even while the net was only partially constructed, the suicide rate fell by half. As of January 1, 2024, the net is complete with hopes of eliminating suicides entirely at this location. Other interventions such as window barriers or screen platform doors have also proven effective at reducing suicide rates.

When access to one method of suicide is blocked, substitution of another method is rare.

A common misconception is that if a person is stopped from completing their suicide attempt at one location, they will find another means. But research shows that this is not the case. Installing barriers at one suicide hotspot location is not found to increase suicides at other popular locations nearby. In the rare event that a person does substitute with another method, it is usually less lethal and therefore allows more time for intervention.

9 out of 10 survivors of suicide attempts do not go on to die by suicide.

An interrupted attempt can act as a wake up call, letting the person or their loved ones know that they need to seek help. A barrier can be a symbol of hope that the community is looking out for its members and that there are other people going though similar struggles. A few survivors of suicide jump attempts, such as Kevin Hines and Kevin Berthia have gone on to become spokespeople and advocates for suicide prevention, reminding others that there is hope.