Local Board Of Ed Hero Talks Woman Out Of Jumping Off Bridge

MASTIC BEACH, NY — The heroic actions of a board of education member in the William Floyd School District saved a woman from jumping from the George Washington Bridge.

According to the William Floyd School District, on Wednesday morning, Robert Taiani, a BOE member who serves as an officer in the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department’s emergency services unit, helped save a distraught woman from jumping off the lower level of the George Washington Bridge.

After the emergency call was received, PAPD Officer Terrance McPike, the first to arrive on scene, found a woman standing on a small 2' by 1' metal outcropping jutting out from the lower level of the Hudson River span, the district said.

McPike talked with the woman in an effort to give his colleagues with the emergency services unit, Taiani and Officer Michael Stoia, time to arrive, the district said.

After arriving on scene, Stoia climbed over the railing to continue talking with the woman while Taiani set up the rigging for the ropes and the harness, which was used to secure the woman and bring her to safety.

It's not the first time that Taiani has been involved with saving a life — just this past June he helped revive a person with CPR, the district said.

An 18-year PAPD veteran with 13 years as a member of the emergency services unit, Taiani said it felt good to help save someone’s life.

Taiani, a lifelong resident of the William Floyd community and 1991 graduate of William Floyd High School, has served as a member of the William Floyd Board of Education since 2008. He resides in Moriches with his wife Lisa and four sons, Robert, Matthew, Nicholas and Mason.