CHEYENNE (AP) — Wyoming's new suicide prevention call center is up and running.

Organizers say the call center prevented its first suicide soon after launch back in August.

Wyoming has one of the highest suicide rates in the U.S. but was the only state without its own suicide hotline.

Organizers Bernice and and Kevin tell the Wyoming Tribune Eagle not all callers are suicidal.

Many are seniors who don’t have anyone else to talk to, but the center’s two full-time employees never hang up.

Many call from outside Wyoming but get directed to the call center because they have cell phones with a 307 area code.

Before the hotline opened at the Central Wyoming Counseling Center, 1430 Wilkins Circle, Bernice Hazucha said in a prepared statement, “By having this resource here, we’re going to be able to relate to our callers better, and we’ll be better equipped to connect them to the resources they need to successfully get through whatever trauma they’re facing."

The hotline number is (307) 776-0610.

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