Hotline fails to prevent Tappan Zee suicides

Four suicide prevention call boxes linking people to a 24-hour crisis hotline have been in place on the Tappan Zee Bridge since August 2007, but so far officials say no one has made the call. Pat Lazar,

News 12 Staff

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Aug 5, 2009, 11:53 PM

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Updated 5,621 days ago

Four suicide prevention call boxes linking people to a 24-hour crisis hotline have been in place on the Tappan Zee Bridge since August 2007, but so far officials say no one has made the call.

Pat Lazar, psychology professor at Rockland Community College, says unless there is someone on the bridge who can convince a person in crisis not to commit suicide, that person will not call for help.

In 2007, two suicides were committed on the Tappan Zee Bridge. A year later, five people took their lives and two more attempted suicide. So far this year, there have been two suicides and two attempts.