Butler County veteran suicide rate now double the national average
County saw zero veteran suicides in Q1 2026; five died by suicide in the following quarter
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BUTLER COUNTY, Ohio (WXIX) - The suicide rate among veterans in Butler County is now double the national rate for veteran suicides, according to the Butler County Veterans Service Office.
The county began 2026 with a strong first quarter, recording zero veteran suicides. But the second quarter reversed that trend.
“Beginning of this Q2 just absolutely was devastating,” said Mike Farmer, director of the Butler County Veterans Service Office. “It was one of those where you come in and you don’t even want to open your e-mail.”
Five veterans died by suicide in Q2
Five veterans died by suicide during April, May and June. Farmer said military training may be a contributing factor.
“A lot of our training is you don’t ask for help, you don’t seek treatment,” said Farmer. “You learn to compartmentalize and shut things off and they get to a point where it just boils over.”
Wide age range among those lost
Farmer said the age range of the veterans who died is broader locally than national trends suggest.
“From the 20s to the 70s,” he said. “And so nationally, 18 to young 30s, 18 to 31 is pretty much the spike. Here locally, it’s kind of, it’s level across all the boards. And you know, we’ve got the younger veterans, 20, 21 years of age, all the way through last year; our oldest was in their 90s.”
Crisis response and intervention timing
Butler County has a Mobile Response Crisis Team available 24/7. Farmer said the speed of intervention is critical.
“If we could cut that time to 30 minutes where somebody intervenes or a crisis line, our rate of success would be much higher at stopping the individual. So typically less than 20 minutes is what you’re looking at for over half of the cases,” said Farmer.
Farmer said community members do not need to be in crisis themselves to reach out for help on behalf of someone else.
“You don’t have to be the individual calling, asking for help,” said Farmer. “You could be a concerned citizen, a concerned family member about an individual’s welfare.”
The Veterans Service Office is currently reaching out to the families of the veterans who died to offer support and gather information.
“We’ve got some really good data, but it’s just tragic,” said Farmer. “One is too many.”
Anyone struggling, or anyone who knows a veteran in need of help, can call or text 1-844-427-4747, or dial 988 and press 1.
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