Rangers Successfully Intervene In Suicide Attempts

Last month, rangers successfully intervened in three separate suicide attempts made by two park residents. The first instance occurred early on the morning of January 16th. Ranger Jason Montoya was patrolling on West Rim Drive when a vehicle approached from the opposite direction at a high rate of speed and partially in the opposing lane. Montoya pursued, found the vehicle already stopped in the road when he caught up, and made a traffic stop. The driver of the vehicle, identified as a local Grand Canyon resident, was noticeably intoxicated. When asked where he was going, he said that he was “driving to the Abyss to jump off.” The Abyss is a popular viewpoint on the South Rim with a 3,000 foot vertical drop. He was arrested without incident for driving under the influence. An interview with the man’s roommate revealed that he’d been depressed recently and that he’d been drinking heavily. When the roommate returned home, he found that the man was missing and that he’d left several personal items for him, so assumed that he’d committed suicide by jumping from the rim. A week later, on January 22nd, rangers were dispatched to Colter Hall, a concession dorm within the park, to deal with an intoxicated woman, but found that she’d been put to bed in her room. As they were leaving the dorm, she ran out of her room, down the stairs, and toward the rim, saying that she was going to jump. The rangers caught her before she could do so. She was detained under Title 36 (the Baker Act) and transported to Flagstaff Medical Center for evaluation. On the evening of January 24th, rangers were again dispatched to Colter Hall to deal with a drunk and suicidal woman. When they arrived, they found it was the same woman. She was in the process of writing a suicide note when rangers entered her room. After a struggle, she was again detained and transported to Flagstaff Medical Center for further evaluation.