We must do something to stop Orwell Bridge deaths, says mum of Archie Hall

Archie Hall (Image: Archant)

That is the call from the family of a man who fell from the bridge last year, aged just 20, who had been suffering from mental health problems.

Archie Hall had come home to Holbrook from university in Lincoln after experiencing emotional problems. That evening he drove to The Strand next to the River Orwell, parked, and climbed to the bridge before falling from it, despite frantic efforts from family members to find him before it was too late.

Today the East Anglian Daily Times and the Ipswich Star are launching a campaign to highlight the issue.

Archie’s mother, Laura Hall, has said something must be done to the bridge to make it harder for people to access it on foot to try and prevent more deaths.

Archie Hall with mum Laura Hall (Image: Archant)

“At the very least there should be an inquiry into what can be done, how much it would cost and whether it would work,” she said.

“There were three deaths in quick succession, Archie being the first. In Archie’s case there seems to be a little bit of evidence there was some hesitation. The family were looking out for him that night and they weren’t far behind.

“If anything could have been done to the bridge to delay and make him think twice we may have had a different outcome.”

Ms Hall said family and friends had to drive over or under the bridge almost every day, a painful reminder of her son’s death.

Archie Hall (Image: Archant)

And despite the number of people who have fallen from the bridge since it was completed in 1982 no additional safety measures have been put in place to stop or hinder people trying to climb over the low side walls.

“When you Google ‘deaths from the Orwell Bridge’ it’s so sad to read reports of families like ours being in the same situation five years ago, 10 years ago, that there were talks then to make the bridge a bit of a safer place and it just drifts and it goes on,” Ms Hall added. “I do really think it’s time for something to change and this winter when there were three deaths in three weeks, it can’t carry on like that.”

She also said it was not just the families of the people who died who were affected by the issue – the coastguard, the emergency services and people who may witness people falling, or find bodies or severely injured people beneath the bridge.

“There’s been cases of motorists witnessing either, if you’re on the bridge, somebody jumping off, or if you’re on The Strand underneath actually even worse seeing a death in front of you.

“I think it’s happened to a bus of schoolchildren once. You can’t say you’re ever going to stop suicide but I don’t think it needs to be that sort of theatre anymore, the bridge shouldn’t be a place for it.”

Archie had been experiencing mental health problems while living in Lincoln and at his previous university in Exeter which may have influenced his actions on the day of his death.

Ms Hall said while one section of the public had no sympathy with suicide, mental illness was something which would affect everyone in their lives, either directly or indirectly, and was “a silent, deadly killer waiting to strike”.

Asked what needed to be done she added: “I think restricting pedestrian access across there would be the easiest thing and the most cost effective thing.

“On top of that it would be nice if they could look into making it almost impossible for people to kill themselves by jumping off the bridge with a net or a higher wall, fencing.

“It’s a beautiful bridge and wouldn’t it be lovely to make it the safest bridge in the country rather than the unsafest bridge in the country, because that’s what it’s becoming known as.

“People are looking at it and they’re thinking of suicide, they’re not looking at it as a beautiful architectural structure.”