Granville Bridge death was preventable, advocates say

Content warning: The following story deals with the subject of suicide. If you or a loved one is at risk of self-harm, call Crisis Centre BC at 988. Translation services are available.

Mental health advocates and Granville Island officials are renewing calls for suicide-prevention barriers on the Granville Bridge after a woman fell to her death.

Advocates say the death of a woman who fell from the Granville Bridge, could have been prevented.

Nine hours. That’s how long a woman was on the edge of the Granville Bridge before she fell to her death. A death that advocates say could have been prevented.

“Suicide prevention barriers on that bridge would have made this impossible,” said Stacy Ashton, Executive Director of Crisis Centre BC.

Ashton says safety barrier installation on Vancouver’s Granville Street Bridge is well past due. She points to the Burrard Street Bridge which has barriers in place and where she says there haven’t been any suicides since their installation in 2017.

“These are barriers that keep people safe, that give people time to re-consider, that make it easier and safer for first responders to help,” said Ashton.

In March, Vancouver city council rejected a motion to fast-track implementation of suicide barriers from their Capital Plan. While city staff say this project is still a priority for the bridges in the long term, barriers won’t be installed until federal or provincial funding is supplied.

“Those bridge barriers are worth every penny, and we should be prioritizing that in the budget,” said Ashton.

Tom Lancaster has been the general manager of Granville Island for nearly six years. He says he and his staff have seen enough tragedies on the bridge. As a result, Lancaster says they’ve had to develop their own traumatic incident response protocol for Island workers.

“They’re looking for the feds and the province to come to the table and I really don’t see that happening because it’s not their responsibility,” said Lancaster.

“For them to have to have this happen around them in their workplace is inexcusable, that this continues to happen.”

The provincial police watch dog is investigating the woman’s death – after police spent several hours speaking with her prior to her death. Meanwhile, advocates say they will continue pushing for suicide prevention barriers to avoid another tragedy.

“How many people have to lose their lives before this becomes a decision you have to make?”

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