Passers-by prevent apparent suicide attempt in Hickman area

Seeing a woman apparently ready to jump from the Hickman Road bridge into the Tuolumne River on Wednesday afternoon, several passers-by stopped to intervene.

Stanislaus County Supervisor Vito Chiesa was among the drivers at the scene and posted on his Facebook page how proud he was of the people “for caring and getting involved.”

The incident occurred about 12:20 p.m., Chiesa said. A friend he’d just had lunch with called him because he was driving on Hickman Road and came across the woman. The supervisor, whose District 2 includes Hickman, immediately called Sheriff’s Department dispatch and headed to the bridge, he told The Bee.

His understanding was that the woman had her feet over the guardrail and was threatening to jump. A man was able to grab her and pull her to safety. The woman, who Chiesa said possibly was intoxicated based on the way her speech was slurred, was combative.

“Two other women stopped to help calm and restrain her,” he posted on Facebook. “Two younger gentlemen stopped their car to help out. I arrived right before the sheriff’s deputies to see all these folks trying to help in any way possible.”

Deputies blocked traffic to the bridge and had to handcuff the woman, who continued to be combative, Chiesa said.

The 52-year-old woman was despondent over a relationship issue, Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Anthony Bejaran said. “We took her on a mental health hold so she could be evaluated,” he said.

“Everyone was so positive, telling her that life was going to be OK,” Chiesa said of those who stopped to help. “It’s an indication of how great our county is, the people who live here.”

Bejaran agreed, and added, “I think we see that a lot in our county; we get a lot of community help. But a lot of it goes unreported. People don’t always want to be recognized, for whatever reason, they see others in need and just want to be of help.”

This story was originally published February 3, 2016 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Passers-by prevent apparent suicide attempt in Hickman area."