 | Nuselský Bridge – The end of the suicide legend 02-04-2008 Nuselský Bridge in Prague has long been famous for its suicidal history. The
Prague City Council however did not accept the bridge's reputation and looked
for ideas to prevent people from being able to commit suicide by jumping off the
bridge. Nine months ago special barriers were put in place on the bridge, which
is now also under the daily surveillance of a camera system. According to the
security commission of the Prague City Council, no one has managed to climb over
the barriers and commit suicide ever since the construction of the barriers.
Thus, after 35 years, we see the end of an era in the bridge’s history than can
be described as suicidal.
Nuselský Bridge opened on 22nd February 1973 (originally Klement Gottwald
Bridge) and from that time it also became a drastic solution for people in dire
straits. Around 300 people committed suicide by jumping off the bridge. In 1990
a further 1.5 metres was added to the existing 1 metre railing, but this did not
help. Between 1996 and 1997 new fencing with dense mesh was installed to a
height of 2.7 metres. This now presented a barrier which could not easily be
overcome, but even this prevention at an expense of more than 15 million crowns
could not deter people from impulsive decisions.
The City Council however, had no intention of accepting the fact that the
bridge still had a reputation as a place for suicides. Several companies were
invited to submit solutions. There were plenty of ideas, for example a folding
framework which would not support a climber’s weight, electric fencing etc.
Ideas were also submitted by Prague residents. In the end the winning submission
was a relatively simple idea which has proven very effective – a curved
construction of stainless sheet steel which is flexible and smooth. In tests not
even the best climbers could get over it. “Building work was completed in
September 2007 and since then there have been no suicides from the bridge,”
states Pavel Žďárský, the head of the City Council’s security commission. The
Chief of Prague emergency services, Zdeněk Schwarz, points out that the number
of attempts to climb over the barriers has also fallen by 50%. “No-one has been
able to climb over the barrier and jump,” says Schwarz.
The purpose of the barriers, though, is to prevent people making a sudden
decision to jump from the bridge. “It’s obvious that, if a person prepares to
commit suicide, they would certainly find things to help them get over the
barriers. Of course, no barrier can prevent this,” states Pavel Žďárský. The
success of the solution led the security commission of Prague City Council to
take out a patent on the barriers.
Nine months after the barriers were put in place, the security commission
again evaluated their decision and reached the unanimous conclusion that the
installation of barriers, at a cost of 5 million crowns, was a step in the right
direction. Not only have human lives been saved, but the work of police, fire
and emergency services has also been saved. In some cases, interventions on the
bridge took up to three hours and involved up to fifteen people.
Source:
Portal
of Prague
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