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The family of a Taos County teen who died by suicide at the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge in September filed a wrongful death lawsuit this week against the New Mexico Department of Transportation.

The lawsuit accuses the state of failing to install safety measures at the National Historic Landmark despite dozens of suicides there since it opened in 1965.

Taos County Sheriff鈥檚 deputies recovered the body of 15-year-old Noah Salmon of Taos below the Gorge Bridge on Sept. 21 鈥� one of seven such deaths recorded at the historic steel arch span, which sits 600 feet above the canyon floor west of Taos.

In a civil complaint filed in First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe, the Salmons argued through their attorney that their son鈥檚 death could have been prevented had the state acted upon three feasibility studies that proposed safety measures at the Gorge Bridge in 2009, 2015 and 2018.

The proposals centered on the bridge鈥檚 4-foot tall railings, calling for higher rails, vertical netting that could act as a barrier or chain link fencing, among other solutions.

NMDOT closed the bridge to foot traffic last September following a string of three deaths that month alone. In December the agency announced it would install higher railings and lighter-weight sidewalks, the day after deputies recovered the body of a Colorado woman who also died by suicide at the bridge.

But sa国际传媒官网网页入口-based attorney Shayne Huffman said in Monday鈥檚 complaint that, for dozens of families whose loved ones have traveled from near and far to take their lives at the Gorge Bridge, the action is too little, too late.

In Monday鈥檚 complaint, Huffman asserted that the state had failed to address a known 鈥渓ethal hazard for decades.鈥�

鈥淒espite this knowledge, NMDOT took no meaningful action to implement these deterrents or otherwise ensure the safety ofe the public at the Bridge prior to the death of Noah Salmons,鈥� the complaint reads.

Asked for comment on Tuesday, agency spokesperson Kristine Mihelcic said NMDOT 鈥渄oes not comment on pending or threatened litigation.鈥�

Speaking with the Journal this week, Huffman said the civil complaint may be the first of its kind in New Mexico, but the lawsuit refers to national studies demonstrating suicide deterrents to be effective at high bridges that have attracted people in crisis elsewhere in the U.S.

He referred to two oft-cited examples where higher railings have greatly reduced instances of suicide: The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Royal Gorge Bridge outside Colorado Springs.

He said that higher railings were installed in both instances, removing a certain path to suicide for people in distress and a source of trauma and cost for those communities.

鈥淧eople aren鈥檛 finding ways to get around these railings, right?鈥� he said. 鈥淏ecause suicide, it鈥檚 an impulsive thing that happens for somebody in a moment of crisis.鈥�

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. The New Mexico Crisis and Access Line can also be reached at 855-662-7474 (855-NMCRISIS).

John Miller is the sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 northern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at jmiller@abqjournal.com.