Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco

They are closing down the bridge on you, uncle Paul. 
When I saw your photograph it was after you died 
Standing there with round face eyeglasses and curly hair 
Next to your chubbier and heavier brother, and his wife. 
How does it happen when one stands on a bridge, 
Do you jump instantly so you have no regrets 
Or do you stand there pondering thinking recalling 
And just send a foot. Forward. Slowly.
 
And what if the Golden Gate Bridge never existed 
Would that have stopped you 
Or would you have found some tall building 
Like Reuven your sister’s son 
And what’s keeping your brother 
It used to be his wife 
Now I think it’s madness itself, 
It’s madness that keeps him from jumping. 

And what kind of person were you, my uncle I didn’t know, 
Surely we could spend an evening drinking beer. 
On both sides of the bridge there is a low rail, I read, 

And vertical grilles only 7 feet high 
And the water is swarming with sharks; 
2 patrolmen move about 24 hours on a 3 wheeled vehicle 
Trying to spot people who act suspiciously: 
People who carry nothing on their person 
Or stand there for hours on end near the rail and watch the horizon. 

Today we know of some 1200 people who committed suicide. 
From 1937 until 1997 over sixty years, 
Which makes about 20 people a year. 
So what do the patrols do, that have been going on for a year now, 
And arrested in the past year 34 people who apparently tried. 
Maybe all 34 have gone back to the bridge - 
The hardship only increased their motivation. 

The bridge authorities, engineers and architects 
Argue against building a fence: the fence will create a real security hazard 
Due to the strong winds (5-7.5 knots an hour) that blow in the bay. 
They gave a warning that any fence could serve as a sail: 
The wind will strike it so hard it’ll make the bridge sway dangerously. 
That on top messing up the aesthetics, which for San Francisco, 
One of the world’s most touristy cities, is not to be overlooked. 

Many plans were submitted to the committee that was formed. 
The simple ones suggested a thin wire net, 
The more sophisticated ones suggested a see through plastic partition, 
Rotating wheels one couldn’t hold on to, and even an electric fence. 

Researchers say that besides a relatively easy access to death 
(The lack of a fence, an easy access to vehicles and a large parking lot on one side), 
The bridge also attracts suicides for other reasons, 
Which have not yet been sufficiently studied. 
Obviously one reason is the feeling that 
Jumping off the bridge promises an extravagant and dramatic death. 
Another possible reason is the accepted assumption that 
A death by jumping into water is relatively easy and doesn’t cause much suffering. 

“This is a myth without substance”, says Eve Mayer, 
Head of the Prevention of Suicides Association in San Francisco, 
“A person who would jump off the bridge will crash onto the water within 6 seconds, 
Just as if they were crashing into a cement wall at 100 miles an hour 
All the bones in the body are broken, internal organs get crushed, 
But death does not occur instantaneously. 
The jumper will keep floating, bleeding, and after a while 
The sharks will gnaw his body”. 

GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE IN SAN FRANCISCO