Support for teen’s bid to light up bridges

A teenage girl, who lost a cousin to suicide, has won council backing for her bid to light up bridges in her native Limerick with anti-suicide messages, to try to prevent others taking their own lives.

Scores of families have been left devastated after countless numbers of loved ones perished by suicide in the River Shannon that flows through the middle of the Treaty City.

Katie Whelan, a Leaving Certificate student, came up with the idea after having a dream over Christmas, in which her late cousin Lisa — who died by suicide three years ago — saw a message on a bridge which changed her mind about ending her life.