The number of suicides in Greenland began to rise in the 1970s. Before that it had been very low. It kept getting higher until 1986. In 1986, suicide was the leading cause of death in several towns, such as Sarfannguit. Before 1970, the rate of suicide in Greenland had been very low. But by 1994, it had become one of the highest in the world. The rate was 107 per 100,000 persons committing suicide per year. Government data in 2010 suggested that almost one suicide occurred a week.