PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (WCAX) – The regional 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in Essex County, which covers the North Country, is now available 24/7 as of this month. It comes as suicide rates have spiked in Clinton County over the last year. Our Alek LaShomb reports on what’s being done in Plattsburgh to bring awareness to the growing issue.
It’s a phone call no one ever wants to get– that a loved one has died by suicide. In Clinton County, New York, it’s one that’s becoming increasingly more common in recent years.
“Suicides are alarming but it is the middle-aged population, so 20 to age 50,” said Richelle Gregory, the director of community services for Clinton County Mental Health and Addictions.
Gregory says suicide numbers increased to 13 in 2023, the highest in the last decade. There were 8 in 2022, 1 in 2021 and none in 2019 and 2020.
She says the increase started during the pandemic.
“The general fear and anxiety related to the pandemic, and then people experienced trauma, deaths and family members very, very ill. So, I think coming out of the pandemic we have a real mental health crisis,” Gregory said.
The mission now is to prevent further spikes by expanding local resources and raising awareness. That’s being carried out by the Clinton County Coalition to Prevent Suicide.
“Many of us are what are called suicide loss survivors, and doing something to stop suicide as a major cause of death is very important,” said Bonnie Black, the chair of the Clinton County Coalition to Prevent Suicide.
She says one of those prevention measures includes constructing a mural on the wall of Warren Tire that will highlight the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline number next to an illustration of the Adirondack mountains and semicolons that make up the sun.
“Semicolons symbolize a time when there could have been a period. A time when someone could have died by suicide but they chose not to and the sentence continued, their life continued,” Black explained.
She says a local artist will begin work on the mural in June, with a ribbon cutting slated for late August.
Black reminds people in the North Country the 988 hotline is available 24/7, and to reach out if you are struggling with your mental health.
For more resources, visit 988lifeline.org.