The French King Bridge, which links Route 2 from Gill to Erving, is a destination for tourists who want to take in the grand view of the Connecticut River.
But unfortunately, the bridge is also a destination for troubled people who seek to end their lives.
It’s a tragic situation that the state, which owns the bridge, was supposed to address, but now it appears the state Department of Transportation aka MassDOT has “deprioritized” the construction of safety barriers.
This is a mistake.
First, the railings are only 3½ feet high, which is not much of a barrier for visitors, especially children, and those there on official business in bad weather such as police and other first responders.
And then there are those who know of the bridge’s reputation — like so many in our nation — as a place to end it all.
According to records kept by Erving from 2009 to 2019, the town received 313 calls for service concerning potential suicides, 14 confirmed suicides, 62 people taken into custody and two who remain missing.
So far this year, there have been 13 calls. One case involved a woman whose body was found downstream a month after she went missing in April and apparently had researched the bridge online.
Consider also the response needed by local police in Gill and Erving to attend to these emergency calls, never mind the recovery of those who ended their lives in the river 140 feet below.
Today we run an op-ed from Stacey M. Hamel, whose son, U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer Bryan Hamel, is one of the “missing.”
Hamel, whose family spent nine months in 2018 trying to find his body on the river, makes a plea for the state to reconsider its decision to take the project off its priority list. We hope it has an impact on the state officials that were sent the piece.
The state did install cameras in 2016, but instead of capturing video, they are still cameras programmed to take photos at timed intervals. Obviously, this means gaps in coverage.
Two years later, the state appeared to make progress through a feasibility study to install barriers that improve safety and possibly inhibit suicides, including a design the Gill and Erving officials approved.
MassDOT publishes an annual update on its plan for capital priorities for the coming four years. The French King Bridge made the list in 2019 and 2020 — but in the current plan, which only looks ahead one year, it didn’t. Probably the switch from four years to one year is reflective of the pandemic and its impact on state funds, although that explanation has not been forthcoming.
A Recorder reporter attempted to reach MassDOT multiple times for an explanation but did not receive a response.
We hope this is not a case of putting this project on the back burner because it is located in the western part of the state and not the eastern part.
Yes, at $3 million, installation of these barriers is not a cheap project for the state, but consider the costs borne by local towns who respond to mutual aid for emergencies. The estimate is $8,625 per incident. That doesn’t include the emotional toll related to such calls.
And who can put a price on a human life lost at the bridge — and the distress for people, like Hamel, who must deal with the aftermath?
We urge our local senators and representatives to take notice that the French King Bridge is currently not a priority for the state and to take action. People’s lives depend on it.