Woman takes life while chatting on Facebook, no one calls police

Too sad she died! A woman described her final moments of purposely inhaling poisonous fumes on Facebook to nine friends, some of whom begged her stop. Some of those friends attempted to track her down on their own but failed.

None of them called the police however, or alerted anyone at all.

Claire Lin, 31, of Taipei, Taiwan died on March 18. "Too late. "My room is filled with fumes," read Lin's final post. "I just posted another picture. Even while I'm dying, I still want FB [Facebook]. Must be FB poison. Haha."

"Be calm, open the window, put out the charcoal fire, please, I beg you," one friend wrote Lin, who was found by her boyfriend the following morning. Lin's family only found out about the online conversation after her death. A sociologist quoted in the AP article ascribed the incident to isolation in the Internet age. But as with all such unfortunate stories, the reason is never this simple.


Facebook
"Most people who die by suicide give some indication, in terms of exhibiting these warning signs," Lidia S. Bernik, associate project director of National Suicide Prevention Lifeline told msnbc.com "All too often, those around them are not knowledgeable and they don't react, and they might have had an opportunity to save a life and didn't know it."

As people grow more comfortable with sharing their feelings online, social media provides opportunity to identify and reach out to those at risk.

"We are deeply saddened by the tragic death of Claire Lin and our hearts go out to her family and friends," a Facebook spokesperson told msnbc.com.



Here's what the NSPL and Facebook say about help:

How do I report suicidal users on Facebook?
There are two ways to report a suicidal user to Facebook itself. You may either report it when you are scrolling on the suicidal user’s comment, or from the Facebook Help Center. Click here for specific instructions. Once a user is reported to Facebook for posting suicidal content, the content is reviewed by the Facebook Safety Team. If appropriate, Facebook will respond directly to the user via e-mail indicating that someone on Facebook is concerned about their safety and encourage the user to call the Lifeline and/or enter a confidential chat session with a crisis counselor.

How can I chat with the Lifeline on Facebook?
Right now our chat is only for people who have been reported as posting suicidal content to Facebook. If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide please call 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Is the Lifeline Facebook Chat confidential?
Once a user is reported to Facebook for posting suicidal content, the content is reviewed by the Facebook Safety Team. If appropriate, Facebook will respond directly to the user via e-mail indicating that someone on Facebook is concerned about their safety and encourage the user to call the Lifeline and/or enter a confidential chat session with a crisis counselor. If the user chooses to enter chat, he or she will be redirected to a site hosted by the Lifeline. Security controls, including encryption and authentication, are in place to ensure the protection of any information submitted via chat. Additionally, the user who is given the opportunity to chat does not have to disclose any identifying information.