A sailor on the USS Carl Vinson is being hailed as a hero for helping to prevent a suicidal man from jumping off the Coronado Bridge.
According to the Navy, Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Fuel) 1st Class (AW/SW) David Lawrence pulled his car over on the bridge in the early morning hours of June 19th when he noticed another vehicle stopped on the bridge without its hazard lights on. Lawrence saw an older man near the railing, who then climbed over the barrier in preparation to jump.
Lawrence says he spent 20 minutes talking to the desperate man:
"My thought was, 'Please don't jump. How am I going to keep this guy from jumping? What can I possibly say that will make him think it's not worth it?' I just talked about everything I did and tried to let him see that there's positive stuff out there."
FBI agents, the California Highway Patrol, and San Diego Police arrived on the scene and were able to convince the suicidal man to not jump. After law enforcement took him into custody, the man asked to see Lawrence.
He just wanted to say thank you.
