Here’s probably a very unique and unusual way of preventing people from committing suicide by jumping off of bridges. Apparently this is somewhat common in China, so some workers decided to do something about it. The source is the same as the last article, WPTV.com:
Slippery when buttered
Last Update: 10:12 am
Chinese workers have covered a giant steel bridge with butter because officials are fed up with traffic jams caused by people who slow down to watch suicide victims leaping to their death.In a single month eight people jumped to their death with many more threatening to end their lives on the bridge.
The butter was spread over all of the climbable surfaces and it appears to be working. Officials report they are able to get to the bridge and catch the suicide attempters.
Copyright WENN.com. Metro.co.uk contributed to this report.
Here’s hoping that missionaries over there can spread the Gospel there more quickly to these urgent cases.
Kind of defeats the need for Slippery When Wet signage.
I don’t get it. So people aren’t attempting suicide with the butter on the bridge or they are but it’s just not causing traffic jams? Do they slip over before people can watch? It says that supposedly the officials are catching them, but I don’t know…
Sounds like they are attempting, but failing from the slippery rails. They probably still slow traffic down, but at least they are not there for hours as negotiators are brought in and try to talk them down. Now the police can come in and just grab the one attempting suicide. Until they start coming prepared for the slippery bridge, that is…
Anyway, that’s my take FWIW.
I’m wondering if they would want to use something other than butter. Butter really smells bad when it turns rancid. I’m sure there are other oils that would not go bad.