A public vigil was held Friday evening to remember a teenage girl struck and killed by an Edmonton transit bus last weekend.
Family and friends of 13-year-old Mariama Sillah gathered in the Clareview neighbourhood to honour the young girl, who died after she was struck by a bus while walking in a marked crosswalk in the area of 137 Avenue and 40 Street last Saturday evening.
Sillah was a student at Victoria School. Her uncle told Global News earlier this week she was walking home from Subway when she was struck by the bus.
READ MORE: Family of teen hit by Edmonton bus shares grief over devastating loss
At the vigil Friday night, mourners carried candles and purple balloons as they walked from the intersection to the Subway and back. About 200 people were in attendance, many wearing Sillah’s favourite colours, purple and blue.
“This is telling us that it’s a life cut short and it was a life that was promising,” Kemoh Mansaray, president of the Sierra Leone Community.
“Even though she’s gone, her flame with be with us, burning and showing light for us in her community.”
About half of the people at the vigil were from the Sierra Leone Community. Many of Sillah’s schoolmates also attended and said their friend loved to read and write.
“She was extremely kind,” Sarah Lymburner, Sillah’s friend, said. “If someone was having a really bad day, they could always talk to her. She was always smiling and laughing.”
“She’s literally always smiling. Every time I catch her she’s always smiling, no matter what,” Angelika Mendoza, another one of Sillah’s friends, said.
“She was definitely really respectful. She wasn’t rude to anyone. She’s pretty much the nicest person I know.”
Memorials with candles and stuffed animals were set up at each corner of the intersection.
Police are still seeking witnesses to the crash and anyone who may have been on the bus at the time. Charges have not been laid in relation to the incident.
READ MORE: Edmonton police look for passengers on bus involved in fatal pedestrian collision
Sillah was the second pedestrian struck and killed by an ETS bus in as many months in Edmonton.
In October, an 83-year-old woman was struck by a city bus while walking in a marked crosswalk near 87 Avenue and 169 Street. She was treated at the scene and taken to hospital, where she died of her injuries.
READ MORE: Edmonton pedestrian killed by bus remembered as ‘devoted to her family’
The driver in that incident was charged with one count of failing to yield to a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk under the Traffic Safety Act.
A public funeral will be held for Sillah Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at the Al Rashid Mosque. Anyone who knew Sillah is invited to attend. A reception will follow the service at the Clareview Recreation Centre.
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