Police say drivers on the Alex Fraser Bridge in Delta, B.C. honked and yelled at a man in a mental health crisis standing outside the safety rail, even encouraging him to 'take action'.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
There was a terrible scene on a major artery in Metro Vancouver last week: The Alex Fraser Bridge was shut down in one direction through the afternoon and well into the evening, causing traffic chaos. Many people were badly inconvenienced. Some let it be known in ways that might make you question humanity.
The issue was a person in severe mental-health distress. He had climbed over the safety rail to a tiny ledge, and was gripping the railing. Delta Police arrived within minutes to save his life.
In order to do their job, they had to close down that half of the bridge, all southbound lanes heading toward Surrey. The man was in so much distress that every time an officer came near, he crouched down and leaned out – which could have been fatal. So police couldn’t even be on the sidewalk; they had to speak to him from the traffic lanes. It is extremely noisy on that bridge, as anyone who has driven it knows, with the echoing thumps of each tire going over the joints. The wind can also be loud.
And the bridge moves. Cutting the traffic by half meant cutting the movement by half. “Which is important when you have a guy that’s dangling off the outside of the railing,” the Delta Police Department’s public-affairs manager, Acting Inspector James Sandberg, explained to me. One officer on the scene was worried the bridge was moving so much, the man might have lost his grip.
So the bridge was closed, and drivers were unhappy. Understandable; it was awful for them. But if you think that once they realized the reason, the severity of the situation, everyone quietly retreated and said a prayer for the guy, you would be wrong.
They honked. They rubbernecked. They got out of their cars. They took photos of this poor man. And videos. They posted them to TikTok.
They confronted the officer charged with keeping people away from the life-or-death situation. They called her a very bad name, using a couple of words we cannot print in this newspaper.
They yelled at the man himself, the person struggling with whether to live or die. “There was a lot of ‘jump,’” Acting Insp. Sandberg said.
People called, e-mailed and tweeted at police. Anecdotally, Acting Insp. Sandberg says, the response was about 50-50: about half expressing concern for the man; about half angry at the situation.
Someone started a Twitter poll, seeking input from others on the desired outcome.
It was a disgusting display.
It is terrible that drivers were stuck. We have all been there: late for daycare pickup, going to miss a medical appointment and facing a no-show charge to boot, needing to get to an important event or work meeting.
Really, really needing to get to the bathroom.
But telling the guy to jump? Filming him? Calling a police officer trying to keep everyone safe in the middle of the chaos that name?
These incidents generally end much more quickly, often within minutes once a negotiator arrives. It is very rare that they will continue for nearly eight hours. But it can happen, and it did. And the authorities need to have a better traffic plan than waiting for the incident to be resolved. Delta Police have committed to a review of the situation.
I often wonder how people living cozy lives can judge those who are less fortunate, far away: the refugees who risk their lives in rickety boats, dark deserts or freezing landscapes to try for a better, safer life. How can anyone look at these faces – kids in cages, bodies washed up on beaches – and not feel total, overwhelming empathy?
Well, some people can’t even feel it for a guy a few metres away, in distress, sharing the same bit of bridge deck.
Frustration is understandable. Being crass and heartless is not.
Here’s the better news: After standing on that small platform and hanging on for nearly eight hours, the man climbed back over the safety railing. He was given medical attention and taken into custody, where he is meant to get the help he needs.
And if the public response during the crisis was 50-50, once Delta Police made the highly unusual move to issue a news release about the incident the following day, things changed. The calls, e-mails and tweets overwhelmingly expressed concern and support for the man, wishing him well – 95-5, Acting Insp. Sandberg figures. A lot of “you matter,” he says. “And understand that you are loved.”