Stony Point, NY – Emergency responders from Rockland, Orange and Westchester counties conducted a multi-agency search of the Hudson River Sunday night after a person jumped from the Bear Mountain Bridge, according to fire officials and multiple reports.
The incident occurred on Sunday, Sept. 13. The Piermont Fire Department reported that its Marine Unit and Dive Team were requested at approximately 8:34 p.m. to assist the Stony Point Fire Department following a report that a person had jumped from the bridge. A separate account from Mid Hudson News placed the incident at approximately 8:45 p.m., based on reports from emergency responders in Orange and Rockland counties.
The Piermont response included nine divers, two dive tenders and six emergency medical technicians. The crews traveled to the scene by boat and arrived approximately 18 minutes after the initial call.
Marine units from several jurisdictions converged on the Hudson River as the search expanded south of the bridge. The direction of the search was influenced by conditions on the river. According to the Piermont Fire Department, an outgoing tide was moving the search area farther downstream, leading crews to conduct surface searches south of the bridge.
Piermont Dive Team members ultimately located the person approximately 1.3 miles southwest of the Bear Mountain Bridge. Two divers entered the water and brought the individual aboard the department’s marine unit. Emergency medical personnel immediately began CPR while the boat headed toward shore.
The individual was transported by boat to a pier at Bear Mountain State Park on the Rockland County side of the Hudson River, where additional emergency responders were waiting. Separate reports indicated that the individual was located and brought to a dock within approximately one hour of the initial report.
The individual’s identity was not released in initial reports. The Piermont Fire Department later expressed condolences to the person’s family.
The Sept. 13 incident followed another fatal incident at the Bear Mountain Bridge approximately six weeks earlier. New York State Police said troopers assigned to the Haverstraw barracks responded at approximately 10:08 a.m. on Aug. 2 after receiving a report that a person had jumped from the bridge.
According to State Police, a preliminary investigation determined that a 20-year-old man parked his vehicle on the eastbound side of the bridge before jumping. The New York State Police Underwater Recovery Team responded but did not immediately locate him. On Aug. 6, the Rockland County Sheriff’s Office recovered the man’s body from the Hudson River. His identity was not publicly released in the State Police account.
The incidents come as the New York State Bridge Authority continues efforts aimed at suicide prevention at its Hudson River crossings. The authority’s 2025-2029 Strategic Plan identifies minimizing suicides at its bridges as a safety objective and calls for evaluating deterrent measures, including fencing and other technologies.
The Bridge Authority has selected a steel mesh-style climb-deterrent fence for the Bear Mountain Bridge. The fencing is planned for installation along the bridge sidewalks as part of a larger deck-replacement project. According to the authority, incorporating the fencing into the larger construction project is expected to provide substantial cost savings compared with installing it as a separate project.
Other suicide-prevention efforts at Bridge Authority facilities include emergency phones connecting users with crisis services, employee mental-health and suicide-prevention training, security monitoring through a 24-hour command center and continued evaluation of physical deterrents.
The Bear Mountain Bridge, formally designated the Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bear Mountain Bridge, opened to the public on Nov. 27, 1924. The 2,255-foot suspension bridge carries Routes 6 and 202 across the Hudson River and connects the western side of the river near Bear Mountain with Westchester and Putnam counties to the east. The New York State Bridge Authority acquired the bridge in 1940.
Anyone experiencing a mental health crisis or having thoughts of suicide can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline for confidential support 24 hours a day