Suicidal Statuary

The NYPD rushed to the Empire State Building yesterday after getting reports of a man about to jump off the 24th floor setback. The "man" was actually a statue that is part of the citywide "Event Horizon" installation by artist Antony Gormley, whose statues caused a similar suicide-y ruckus in London three years ago. None of the other ledges and rooftops hosting the statues in NYC are as closely associated with suicide as the ESB. The NYPD is highly unamused.

Police sources say the scourge has led to daily 911 calls that distract operators from assisting in real emergencies. "It's a pain in the ass," said one officer of the art project. "It's a waste of manpower. We're short cops to begin with and we don't have enough cops to waste answering calls of statues committing suicide." The cop's frustration was shared by dumbfounded Empire State Building staff. They couldn't figure out why management would allow a statue to be placed on a building so notorious for suicides that some believed it inspired the term "86'd" -- because people jump off the 86th-floor observation deck. Six people have jumped from the building in the last 10 years, and 34 since the building opened in 1931.

Empire State officials say they plan to leave the statue where it is, despite complaints from the police. Critics expressed concern that all the mistaken calls about the ledge-riding statues might slow the police from rushing to a real jumper's aid. Just last week a young man hurled himself from the 86th floor of the ESB.