Father asks city for fencing on downtown bridge

The pending replacement of the D Street bridge is leading to renewed calls for safety fencing, which advocates say can both prevent accidents and deter
suicides.

Don Wilkerson, whose daughter Theresa jumped to her death from nearby Rivermont bridge in 2001, said the city could save lives by including a fence in its design.

“The stakes are so high,” he said Wednesday. “I’d like to ask a favor of City Council. I’d like every member to walk to the middle of this bridge, lean against the railing, and look down.

“I hope that gives them second thoughts about denying that fence.”

Theresa Wilkerson had a history of schizophrenia. She was living near the Rivermont bridge when she committed suicide; witnesses reported seeing her run down the street to get to the overpass.

Advocates have been seeking fencing for both the Rivermont and D Street bridges for a number of years. The two structures are equal in height and sit close together, nearly intersecting.

City Council in 2002 rejected the idea of fencing along Rivermont, citing the cost and aesthetic drawbacks. Officials do currently plan to install a taller barrier as part of an expected renovation, but are loath to describe it as a fence or say it could deter suicide.

“We plan to do some aesthetic changes to the bridge, and part of that includes removing the existing aluminum railing and putting up a new barrier,” City Engineer Lee Newland said. “It will be more aesthetic looking, and it will be taller. … I cannot tell you it’s going to prevent anyone from jumping off.”

The renovation, prompted by a need to repair the bridge’s deck, is currently in the preliminary design phase. The results of that work are expected to be in later this year.

The D Street bridge was closed in March after suffering a rapid deterioration that left it in serious disrepair. The structure, which leads into the Daniel’s Hill Historic District, is the city’s oldest concrete bridge.

Phil Theisen, a board member of the Lynchburg Depressive Disorders Association and director of the Lynchburg Area Center for Independent Living, said the bridge’s reconstruction is an “ideal” time to add fencing.

“They could do it very easily,” he said. “And it would be cheaper than trying to retrofit a fence later.”

Theisen and Wilkerson have been working together to draw attention to the need for safety fencing. Both say it could circumvent accidents, as well as save someone like Theresa, who did not plan out her suicide but rather made a snap decision in a moment of crisis.

Don Wilkerson, a soft-spoken, thin man who apologizes for his failing hearing when asked a question, described the past seven years since his daughter’s death as a
“nightmare.”

“I’ve never gotten over it,” he said. “I could be on vacation, with friends, having a good time, and then think of her.”

“People say it passes with time,” he reflected. “But it doesn’t.”