Suicide Rates Up in Both State and County

Sept. 11--Suicides and suicide attempts have increased statewide in the past six years.

Lewis County is no exception.

Coroner Warren McLeod said the number of suicides has steadily increased over the past four years. In 2011, 11 people committed suicide in the county. The following year, there were 14 suicides. Last year, there were 16.

So far this year, McLeod anticipates the number to be even higher, as there are still three full months left in the year and there have already been 16 suicides.

"We want to reduce this number because it's totally preventable," McLeod said.

The coroner said the 911 dispatch center receives an average of about three calls a week about suicide attempts or people calling in concerned about other individuals committing suicide.

This week is National Suicide Prevention Week, and according to the the Department of Health, on average, three people every day take their own lives in Washington.

From 2006 to 2012, the statewide suicide rate has increased slightly, according to the Department of Health. While suicide is Washington's eighth leading cause of death, second for those between the ages of 15 and 24, thousands of people are hospitalized every year for suicide attempts.

McLeod said his office has looked at the local statistics about suicides to see if there was a trend, such as geographic location or age. It appears to be random.

"There is no one common theme," McLeod said.

Most of those who committed suicide in Lewis County were men, and the No. 1 means of suicide was firearms, McLeod said. While the large majority of the county's population is concentrated in the Chehalis and Centralia area, the suicides are spread throughout the county.

The age range has been between 13 and 96, he said. For the older individuals, the reasons behind suicide appeared to be more medical issues such as long-term, debilitating diseases. For the younger people, the issues appeared to be social.

"It's very rarely the economy," McLeod said.

Teenage suicides can sometimes snowball, McLeod said. After the death of a 13-year-old Mossyrock boy last year, mental health professionals went into the boy's middle school and met with students to ensure there were no more attempts or suicides.

Due to the increasing number of suicides, McLeod said, he has spoken with people from Cascade Mental Health and Lewis County Public Health and there has been talk of forming a suicide coalition in the county.

Coalitions, however, require funding, so McLeod said they are looking at possible grants. They have also talked about doing public forums in both ends of the county to address the issue.

"I am not sure how much we can do," he said.

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