The body of a 13-year-old girl has been found pulled from New York City's East River hours after telling 911 she wanted to end her life by jumping in the water. The young female was reported missing around 11 pm on Sunday by her mother.
Keep reading for details of this unfortunate incident.
13-year-old Jade Smith's mom Suyapa Martinez reported a missing person case to the authorities around 11 pm on Sunday, after which local police swung into action.
Smith's body was soon discovered in the water near Brooklyn Bridge park around 8 am on Monday by a passerby who alerted the cops. She was declared dead upon their arrival at the scene.
News outlets reported that the Brooklyn schoolgirl had earlier called 911 from her phone around 9:34 pm on Sunday.
The 13-year-old threatened to "jump" on the call, after which it was disconnected. However, the exact location she threatened to jump from is unclear.
According to reports from her family members, she had a history of bipolar disorder and depression.
Before the 911 call, the teenager also sent a disturbing message to her dad at some point in the evening.
The office of the Chief Medical Examiner is yet to state the cause of her death.
The unfortunate incident comes a few days after a 17-year-old teen jumped down from the roof of her nine-story apartment building in the Upper East Side.
The 17-year-old girl was pronounced dead as soon as the authorities arrived. She jumped around 12:54 pm on Sunday.
The deceased girl's mother and sister were at home at the time of the suicide when they heard a loud thud from outside, only to discover it was the 17-year-old who had jumped down the building.
The late teenager, who authorities haven't identified well, is the daughter of an investment banker who works with JP Morgan Chase.
Depression has become common and on the high side among American teenagers, especially females, who are almost three times as likely as teenage boys to have had recent experiences with depression.
Dr. Christine Crawford, an associate medical director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and an associate professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine has stressed the need for primary care doctors to screen their patients for depression regularly.
"Medical providers who are screening for depression signals to patients that talking about depression, talking about your mental health is important for overall health."
The medical director urged people not to let the stigma of mental problems stop them from seeking professional help at any point.
"There is no need to suffer in silence with these symptoms," she said. "There are treatment options available."
