Coroner: Suicides increase slightly in Vanderburgh County

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) - Officials are reporting a slight increase in the number of suicides that occurred in Vanderburgh County between 2013 and 2014.

Data released Wednesday by the coroner's office shows 50 people committed suicide within the county last year. That's about a 14 percent increase from the previous year's tally of 44 suicides.

Vanderburgh County Coroner Annie Groves shared the statistics at a Southwestern Indiana Suicide Prevention Coalition lunch on Wednesday. She says suicides fluctuate with the economy.

There were 25 reported suicides in 2004, compared to 40 suicides in 2007, when the Great Recession started. When the recession ended in 2009, there were 49 suicides reported in the county.

The Evansville Courier & Press (http://bit.ly/1KJENAR ) reports the highest annual total was in 2010 total with 54 suicides.

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Information from: Evansville Courier & Press, http://www.courierpress.com