Johanna Dean's family hopes cyclist's death sparks awareness
Dean's family reached out to the Halifax Cycling Coalition to plan a memorial ride
The family of cyclist Johanna Dean, who was killed in an accident last week, is hoping her death will draw other riders' attention to safety.
Dean, an elementary school teacher, was struck by a truck while cycling on Windmill Road at Albro Lake Road in Dartmouth last week.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Dean's twin sister Julie said she intends to honour her sister's memory. She says the best way to do that is to draw attention to safety for all cyclists.
"Because it may have been part of her destiny here on earth,” said Julie Dean. “It might be part of the reason why she passed, to raise awareness to the cycling issue here in Halifax."
Police said Monday the investigation is still underway and the cause is still unknown.
Ben Wedge, co-chair of the coalition, said it's important to examine cycling infrastructure to see how collisions like this can be prevented in the future.
"Her family recognized that and spoke about that, and I think that's really great of them,” he said.
“The cycling community is really trying to show that it is safe to ride out there and we really have to rally around events like this to ensure that they don’t happen again," he said.
The memorial ride for Johanna Dean will take place on Wednesday.