EDITOR’S NOTE: The spelling of D. Ann Shortess has been corrected in this report.
PORT ANGELES — A 76-year-old woman whose body was found Tuesday morning beneath the western Eighth Street bridge committed suicide by falling to her death, police said.
Deputy Chief Brian Smith identified her as D. Ann Shortess of Port Angeles.
Shortess is the fourth person to commit suicide by jumping off one of the two Eighth Street bridges since they were re-opened in February 2009.
Police made the determination that Shortess’ death was a suicide late Tuesday afternoon after searching her residence, Smith said.
“We found a note referencing her intent to commit suicide,” Smith said.
Shortess had identification with her when she was found beneath the bridge, which is about 100 feet tall at its highest point over the Tumwater Creek truck route.
It was unknown late Tuesday afternoon if Shortess, who was wearing cold-weather clothing, was married or had children, Smith said.
The only known relatives were living out of state, he added.
He also said that as of Tuesday afternoon, police did not know what time she died.
Smith said Shortess was found off the pavement in the dirt beneath the bridge, within 2 to 5 feet west of the paved shoulder of the truck route.
The fire department received a 9-1-1 call at 8:18 a.m. about a person who appeared to be unconscious along the side of the roadway.
Police officers were at the scene beginning at about 8:30 a.m.
Mark Nichols, Clallam County prosecuting attorney and coroner, said Tuesday the final determination of cause of death will be made in consultation with Dr. Eric Kiesel of Tacoma, the county’s contract pathologist.
The Tumwater Creek bridge’s companion eastern span, the Valley Creek Bridge, also is about 100 feet tall at its highest points.
Other suicides
The bridges — which have railings 4-feet, 6-inches tall — have been the site of three other suicide jumps by Port Angeles residents since February 2009, when the bridges that replaced spans built in 1936, were opened.
Those who died are:
■ Joshua Reynolds, 19, who leaped from the Valley Creek Bridge in April 2009.
■ Lisa Marie Bash, 20, who fell from the Tumwater Creek Bridge in July 2012.
■ Stephanie Diane Caldwell, 21, who jumped from the Valley Creek Bridge in October 2014.
21 stopped from jumping
Smith said Tuesday the police department has revised its estimate from 12 people to 21 who have been stopped from jumping while on the bridges or stopped from jumping after threatening to do since the spans were opened in February 2009.
Smith said the numbers were revised after the data search parameters were expanded to include an additional street block connected to the bridges.
The City Council considered installing suicide-prevention fencing and taller railing barriers before rejecting the options in December 2014.
Signs with hotline number
Council members decided Feb. 17 to place eight signs with a 24-hour suicide hotline phone number on the two bridges.
The 12-inch-by-18-inch signs will be installed by mid-March, Public Works Director Craig Fulton said Tuesday.
They will contain a Peninsula Behavior Health logo, a message that advertises 24-hour crisis counseling, and a 1-800-843-4793 phone number, Fulton said.
Peninsula Behavioral Health is 2½ blocks from the Eighth Street bridges.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5060, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
