More than a century ago, people were dying as they ventured too close to Niagara Falls for a better view.

The problem was perhaps worst around the area known as Table Rock, where there was a unique shelf of rock that extended out into the gorge near the rushing water of the horseshoe falls.

“It was dangerous and once in a while people slipped off and fell to their death,” said Sherman Zavitz, the official historian of the City of Niagara Falls and the Niagara Parks Commission. “There was no barrier around the edge of the rock. People have that curiosity sometimes and sometimes that turns into tragedy.”

In the late 1800s, construction began on the long stone parapet wall from the top of the falls downstream along the steep sides of the gorge.

Table Rock crumbled away gradually until 1935 when officials blasted what was left of it to remove any danger.

“You do have to sometimes take measures to remind people that you don’t take chances around these things, to proceed with caution,” said Zavitz.

Around Niagara Falls, where millions of people visit each year, just two non-suicide deaths have been reported in the past six years. In the summer of 2011, a Japanese student fell to her death after climbing over the wall near the falls; a year later a man running from police jumped a wall at the top of the gorge.

In Hamilton, east Mountain councillor Tom Jackson and representatives from police, fire, ambulance, the Bruce Trail Conservancy and the Hamilton Conservation Authority, and the city’s parks, bylaw, risk management and communications departments, are meeting Friday to determine how to ensure visitors to Albion Falls stay safe and don’t take life-threatening risks.

There have been two deaths at Albion Falls and one at Devil’s Punch Bowl in the past year. In 2016, there were 29 rescue calls at Hamilton’s waterfalls. Until last year, that number ranged from a dozen to 20.

Over the past couple of summers, the number of people visiting Albion has grown considerably, with hundreds of people flooding the area on a nice day. Many stay at the top of the gorge, which is about 20 metres deep, but some descend to the bottom of the falls on unmarked paths or slip past fences to find a position for a better photograph.

Jackson’s ad hoc committee will be looking for immediate deterrents such as “shock signs” telling people about the death and rescue count in the area.

“We’ve got to stem the tide of what seems to be an increasing number of these episodes,” said the councillor.

Long term, he said, he would like to see lookout platforms on the Mud Street side, much like those installed a decade ago on the north side of the gorge, and possibly reconstruct the naturescape on that south side to include a staircase and barrier.

“I’ve told staff that’s a possibility,” said Jackson. “In years gone by, staff would have said, ‘Absolutely not, it’s cost prohibitive.’ I’m saying now, don’t let the cost factor be an impediment to you putting together a design, exploring (options). If it’s costly … that’s where I come in politically.”

Insp. Paul Forcier of Niagara Parks Police, which has a full-time complement of officers who patrol the length of the Niagara parkway, said problems around Niagara Falls are rare.

“We get 10 million to 12 million visitors a year and there are very, very few incidents,” he said. “There was a high-profile incident a few years ago, but for the most part no.”

Over the last seven years, the department has had between 34 and 38 rescue calls into the Niagara gorge.

There are marked paths and a steel staircase in the Niagara glen and gorge; the parks police have a specialized rescue team that responds with the local fire department when someone goes off a marked trail and finds themselves in trouble. Often they can be directed to safety — tell them how to get back on the trail or to the staircase — but other times emergency workers need to descend into the gorge to perform a rescue.

The area is governed by the Niagara Parks Act, a provincial statue that sets out fines for 127 infractions, from climbing a fence or wall to swimming in a non-designated area.

Officers have discretion about laying charges, said Forcier, and usually a warning to step back from a dangerous situation suffices.

Around Albion, it’s not uncommon to see people walking across the top of the falls, climbing the rockface or sitting on outcrops.

There are signs warning of ‘no dumping’ and ‘no smoking’ bylaws, and there’s a no trespassing sign next to the stormwater pond across the street to the west of the falls. A sign on the chain link fence at the top of the west side of the gorge says “Danger Keep Out Steep Drop,” but there is no mention of trespassing or possible fine.

Hamilton police Const. Steve Welton says officers patrol parks and waterfalls for criminal activity and will step in if they see someone putting themselves in danger, but are not actively monitoring waterfalls unless they receive a call.

Jackson said the city is ramping up enforcement of parking bylaws near Hamilton’s waterfalls — vehicles along Mountain Brown Boulevard impeded emergency vehicles access to the scene when responding to the June 11 death — but having a bylaw officer ticket dangerous activity is not high on the priority list.

“In terms of trespassing and whatever we may do in that regard, we’ve got to be on as solid legal ground as we can,” he said.