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CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — A committee is discussing ways to try to stop people from jumping to their deaths from the Ravenel Bridge linking Charleston and Mount Pleasant after more than two dozen people have killed themselves since the bridge was opened more than a decade ago.
The group met Wednesday and local media outlets report its 15 members include everyone from mental health experts and lawmakers to highway engineers. Ideas discussed included installing hotline telephones and placing nets beneath the bridge.
In the 11 years since the bridge opened, 25 people have jumped to their deaths. Most of them jumped from the sidewalk on the south side of the bridge, climbing over a fence more than 6 feet tall.
"We can't engineer the perfect solution to the crisis. It's not as simple as going in and installing some taller barriers," said state Department of Transportation Secretary Christy Hall.
Hall said that adding to the height of the barriers on the bridge will require wind tunnel tests to see how they would affect the structure of the span. She says DOT is willing to pay for such studies.
Among the ideas discussed were relatively inexpensive things like installing suicide hotline phones to more costly safety nets like those that are scheduled to be installed beneath the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.
"We all want to prevent deaths. That's why we are here. DOT needs a solid recommendation," said state Sen. Larry Grooms, a Berkeley County Republican who is chairman of the state Senate Transportation Committee.
Grooms said that the state faces highway infrastructure needs statewide and that a collaborative approach with the local community is necessary to determine the best option for the bridge.
Hall said the Transportation Department is willing to work to have the phones installed but needs input from mental health experts to find a long-term solution.
Many of those who jumped from the Ravenel Bridge did not threaten or attempt suicide previously, said Charleston County Chief Deputy Coroner Bobbi Jo O'Neal.
One was from outside the state while most were from the Charleston area.
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