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Firefighters now saving 'jumpers' HARBIN: The municipal fire brigade of Harbin, capital of Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, is pretty busy these days, not with fighting fires but with rescuing people who intend to take their own lives by jumping from high buildings. Records from the fire brigade show that firefighters have had 50 such rescue missions since the beginning of this year. A total of 44 people's lives have been saved following rescue or being talked down. Two people jumped and died, and four others wilfully came down before the arrival of the brigade. However, last year they only had 20 such special service callouts. "We have two such calls every week on average," said Lu Zongwei, from the Management Centre of the Municipal Fire Brigade. Lu said the fire brigade is obliged to assist police in emergency operations above ground level. On the noon of July 24 this year, a drunken migrant construction worker climbed atop the unfinished high-rise building on which he was working. He said that he would jump from it unless his boss paid his 2,000 yuan (US$246) defaulted wages and 5,000 yuan (US$616) compensation for the alleged related psychological harm. Firefighters rushed to the site and set up air cushions below. After three hours of fruitless persuasion, a firefighter climbed up the building without being noticed and seized him from behind. The man was detained later for disturbing the peace. In the latest case, on August 9, a woman, who had a fierce row with her husband, attempted to jump out of the seventh-floor apartment window. She finally agreed to come down after the fire brigade brought her relatives to below the window, talking her out of the suicidal attempt. Lu said there are various reasons for the extreme action of these "jumpers," such as domestic crisis, defaulted wages, lost relatives and depression. However, not all these people actually intend to end their lives. For many it is simply a cry for help to draw attention to their plight, according to Lu. "Their behaviour should be punished in different degrees according to the specific conditions," said Qin Lei, a local police officer. "The 'jumpers' take up so much of our time and resources, sometimes we have to request the attendance of the fire brigade for first aid." (China Daily 08/19/2005 page3)
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