Woman jumps off bridge, why didn’t we hear about it from RWU?

Jayda Ragas, Herald Contributor

By now, the majority of RWU is probably aware of what happened on the night of Monday, Sept. 24… but not due to any efforts from the university’s administration.


It was reported in the last issue that a woman fatally jumped off the Mount Hope Bridge, and that was the first time I had heard anything about it since the night it happened. There was no email, no announcement, and no discussion about this woman’s death from any affiliates of RWU, despite the fact that the incident occurred minutes away from residence halls, including mine.

Around 11 p.m. on Sept. 24, I started to hear people below me talking about how someone had just jumped off the bridge. I got a call from my roommate who was coming back from someone else’s room, and she said she saw a bunch of resident assistants running to the beach, mentioning someone had jumped. Some people said it was two male students –– other people said it was a female student. I didn’t know who to believe, so I sat that night in slight distress with my friends, wondering what actually happened and hoping to get a clear explanation the next day. Nothing came.


Just because the woman who jumped did not work at or attend RWU, doesn’t mean that the university administration shouldn’t have sent an email to everyone to clarify or reassure. We deserve to know what happens on or around campus. Especially with how RWU is so focused on mental health, this should have been a very important situation to bring to the student body’s attention. In the future, I hope we all get notified about deaths and other concerning activity in and around our school.


If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health issues, you can call or visit the counseling center. Their number is 401-254-3124. If they are closed, you can reach Public Safety at 401-254-3333 and ask for the on-call CORE.