File photo.
A 21-year-old man jumped in front of a northbound 1 train at 86th Street station on Thursday afternoon around 3:40 p.m., witnesses told police.
The man was taken to St. Luke’s Hospital and was listed in stable condition, according to an NYPD spokesman. Trains on the Broadway line were diverted around the station.
If you are thinking about harming yourself or attempting suicide please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
For those in crisis there is also the Crisis Text Line, free, 24/7 support for those in crisis. Text 741741 from anywhere in the US to text with a trained Crisis Counselor. Crisis Text Line trains volunteers to support people in crisis. With over 100 million messages processed to date, we’re growing quickly, but so is the need.
Mental issues are a BIG problem for us New Yorkers. We live in such a pressured, fast paced, expensive city. And there truly is NOT enough help for mental issues. There are a lot of “programs”, therapists, and psychiatrists – but who the heck can afford them? Even with great health insurance, you have to pay them first and see if you get the money back, or their copays are so ridiculous – $60, $70 or more per session, more than once a week – what if not earning enough is one of your main issues that give you depression and anxiety???? Even young adults are faced with peer pressures and school pressures, etc. and cannot go seek help.
Even the people who can afford it cannot find therapists for teenagers. We tried to find a therapist this summer that takes our insurance plan for our daughter. There was only one Dr on the UWS IN our network who had openings. We went to her and she was terrible. The demand is so huge right now.
We are living in interesting times. Someone said, “Every life is like an entire world.” A fellow WSR reader pointed out that repeating my message like this will do nothing to stop people from killing themselves even if we do stop some people from falling off the subway platform or from being pushed off the platform by someone else by installing walls on the platforms with doors the allow access to the the train cars but only trains are in the station. I tend to focus on the positives. So, let’s get this building of walls in the NYC subways that will protect people from being hit by oncoming trains. Let this be the last time we need to offer this comment because some poor person got hit by an MTA subway train. These walls we really do need. Does the proposed new budget include the walls? Whatever that budget plan does include let it also include these walls. Make some calls and make it happen. Thank you;.
Drew Kopf says:
July 28, 2017 at 9:23 pm
How much treasure was invested in the new subway stations on the Upper East Side with beautiful art on the walls? Could there not have been some monies dedicated for walls along the platform edges that would have sliding doors that correspond to the subway car doors and open with them? Death by subway train would almost be impossible if we eventually had such wall structures throughout our subway system.
I suggested it earlier this year and last year with some attention paid. But, not enough. The State and the City are duking it out about updating the infrastructure in the subway in NYC. How about getting them both to join forces to stop such needless deaths by subway trains. Let’s just get this done.
Here’s a copy of the last request to do the same. This is New York City. We can surely get it done.
Drew Kopf says:
April 30, 2017 at 11:36 pm
How can we prevent this type of incident in our subways? Here is what I suggested last year in the WSR:
Drew Kopf says:
September 15, 2016 at 11:59 pm
We could build walls along our subway and railroad station platforms with sliding doors located where the doors to the passenger cars are located. It would go a long way to keeping users safer and stop such terrible sadnesses from happening. em
Drew Kopf says:
April 30, 2017 at 11:36 pm
How can we prevent this type of incident in our subways? Here is what I suggested last year in the WSR:
Drew Kopf says:
September 15, 2016 at 11:59 pm
We could build walls along our subway and railroad station platforms with sliding doors located where the doors to the passenger cars are located. It would go a long way to keeping users safer and stop such terrible sadnesses from happening.
Very expensive (I think I remember something like $4B). And even more expensive on the BMT/IND (the “lettered” lines) because of the different models of subway cars that have different distances between the doors; that would require unique technology. Personally, I think the money can be better spent to benefit the millions of daily riders who need better and more reliable service. Anyone intent on killing him/herself by jumping in front of a train will find other options – running in front of a bus, for example.
For your information https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platform_screen_doors
Closing of so many NYC hospitals over past two decades has also meant a loss of mental health inpatient beds. That and or places have shrunk that service down along with others in efforts to cut costs. Either way for those seeking or needing “suicide watch/prevention” getting admitted to a hospital has become difficult.
In effort to find an empty bed such patients are often like anyone else; stuck in an ER or whatever holding pattern until something can be found.
If I understand correctly New York Hospital/Cornell has largely moved their inpatient mental health beds from Payne Whitney on UES to their Westchester campus.
New York City’s psychiatric care system has been in a crisis mode for decades:
https://psychiatry.weill.cornell.edu/payne-whitney-clinic-outpatient-services-newyork-presbyterianweill-cornell-medical-center
As with many other issues large part of problems began during the wave of deinstitutionalization (started in 1970’s), which saw state mental hospitals emptied out. New York like nearly every other state has never spent anywhere near sums needed for local community supportive housing and other services.
On the insurance front ACA was supposed to make things easier for mental health coverage. It largely hasn’t moved needle for various reasons.
Need far outstrips demand, and there just aren’t enough well qualified therapists, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals. Even those who can afford to self fund such care have difficulty finding.
Nope, things are not getting any better on mental health front in this state:
https://www.manhattan-institute.org/deinstitutionalization-mental-illness-new-york-state-city
As it relates to West Side NYP got rid of remaining 30 inpatient mental health beds at Allen Hospital in Inwood a few years ago. https://www.amny.com/news/presbyterian-allen-hospital-psychiatric-1.18237178
https://nypost.com/2018/04/02/lawmakers-rally-over-planned-closure-of-psychiatric-ward/
Nice to see readers responding with compassion. In 30 years of NYC living I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen ordinary people crying convulsively on the street. Nowadays often on a cell phone. It is always heartbreaking.