VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Many still have questions about the incident at the Virginia Beach Fishing Pier from Jan. 27, and some experts believe it has created a widespread, psychological impact on the Hampton Roads community.
Virginia Beach Police say a 57-year-old Virginia Beach man died after driving a car off the pier. They say it appears to have been deliberate. Officials are not releasing his name.
The incident immediately sparked conversations about mental health and suicide awareness. Some people who didn’t even know the man left flowers and letters at the edge of the pier.
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Charese Josie is a licensed clinical social worker. She said she’s still seeing a reaction to this incident.
“We long for connection,” Jose stated. "We have this level of kindness and humanity that’s deep within us, and sometimes it shows for some people and sometimes it harder. Sometimes it takes situations to bring out there’s kindness because there is a connection."
Josie said she thinks the incident at the 14th Street Fishing Pier was unique because many saw the video of the car going down the pier in this man’s last moments.
“I’m thinking this is a universal theme of us feeling helpless,” explained Josie. "Something’s going on; a story is unfolding right in front of our eyes, and there’s absolutely nothing that we can do in the moment."
The therapist added that she feels the fact that it took nearly a week to recover the car – made it even harder for the public to accept.
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“I think it was a lack of not knowing," she said. "‘Why can’t you just go in there? Why can’t you just pull out the car? Why can’t you do this? Why does it take so long?’”
Accepting that we’ll never have all the answers is what Josie recommends, though, that may be easier for some than others. She also suggests identifying what you’re feeling and talking to someone about it.
“If we’re feeling helpless, let go of the secret that ‘I’m feeling helpless’ and say to someone ‘You know, I’m feeling helpless,’" she said. "And someone next to you may say ‘I’m feeling helpless, too.’”
For anyone experiencing a mental health crisis, 988 is the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
