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HILO, Hawaii (AP) — Suicide has surpassed traffic fatalities as the number one cause of death in Hawaii and Hawaii County is seeing the most instances in the state.
The most recent data available through the department of health shows between 2010 and 2014 Hawaii County had 952 nonfatal suicide attempts and 180 deaths due to suicide, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported (http://bit.ly/1I3HegK).
About 96 people per 100,000 on the island attempt and die from suicide, well above the next highest rate of 76.6 people per 100,000 on Kauai. Maui's rate was 76, and Honolulu's was 53.1. The state average is 62.6 suicide deaths per 100,000 people.
Hawaii County Prosecutor Mitch Roth called the suicide rate an "epidemic."
"Right now, those numbers are off the charts," he said in early July.
East Hawaii Department of Education behavioral health specialist JoAnne Balberde-Kamali'i counsels students and trains school officials to spot signs of suicide among the campus population.
"We're working with students to help identify the signs of suicide," Balberde-Kamali'i said. "Our students are so loyal to their friends, and we want them to know they don't have to be the ones to carry the weight of their friends wanting to commit suicide. They can be a bridge to get their friend to a responsible adult.
"We ask them, 'Who would you trust? Think of one or two or three adults on campus who you would trust to go to and speak with.'"
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Information from: Hawaii Tribune-Herald, http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/
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