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Woman Jumps To Her Death From 230 Fifth Rooftop Bar, Others Keep Drinking
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 21, 2015
Modified Jul 21, 2015
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 21, 2015
Modified Jul 21, 2015
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A woman stepped through some shrubbery, climbed a ledge, and jumped to her death during a party on the roof of the 230 Fifth restaurant and lounge in the Flatiron District. An NYPD spokesman said the woman, 30, "entered the establishment, went to the ledge of building, and jumped from 20th floor."
It's unclear if the woman was a patron at the bar or a guest at the party, or had just come to the roof to jump. The NY Post and the Daily News have identified her as Faigy Mayer, and Failed Messiah, a blog often critical of New York's ultra-Orthodox community, describes her as an "ex-Hasid." A Facebook page that appears to belong to the woman shows her with fellow members of the group Footsteps, which helps former ultra-Orthodox Jews transition to secular society. A Linkedin page identifies her as the founder, CEO, and iOS Developer of Appton, "a mobile and web solutions startup."
The NY Post reports that "after the tragedy, some bar patrons still enjoyed table service at the establishment, where bottles can fetch as much as $300 each." From the tabloid:
Although police sources said the woman likely jumped deliberately, one patron said that the bar’s tiny four-wide-foot ledge was barely enough to keep boozed-up partygoers from accidentally toppling to their doom.
Carlos Rodriguez, 51, of Gramercy said he was inebriated one night and perched himself on the edge for a picture. "I sat at the ledge of the roof and was drunk out of my mind,” Rodriguez said. "I was able to sit there and nobody gave a sh-t. They really need to be more careful up there. There’s nothing to keep you from jumping."
230 Fifth did not immediately respond to request for comment about the incident.
Update 11:34 a.m.: One Cathy Latham writes in to say that she was at 230 Fifth last night, but management would not tell patrons what happened. "I was there last night and yes, we kept drinking," Latham said in an email. "However no one told the patrons what was going on. They ushered a high paying party out and you could see the cops going through two bags but most of us thought it was drugs. Our server refused to tell us.
"We saw it in Twitter 20 minutes later and immediately left. We weren't callous or unfeeling. We didn't know."
Update 2:33 p.m.: In a statement, Lani Santo, the Executive Director of Footsteps, said:
“The Footsteps community is grieving the tragic loss of Faigy Mayer. Faigy’s death comes as a shock to all of us, but it is our organization’s policy not to comment on the circumstances surrounding the life or death of anyone connected to our community.
"We wish to remind people that Footsteps assists men and women who are dealing with the serious and far-reaching consequences of leaving ultra-Orthodox Judaism. Our staff and growing membership, now more than 1,000 individuals strong, offer a supportive environment and a range of support services to anyone who has or wishes to transition to secular society.”
If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone; remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt; and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.
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230 fifth
hasids
Jumper
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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