A makeshift memorial is growing at the scene of a deadly crash in Pitt Meadows, where RCMP said a 12-year-old boy was struck and killed by the driver of a recycling truck on Wednesday.
A fundraiser has been created for the boy, who has been named as Chace Nicol, a family friend confirmed early Thursday.
The BC Community Football Association also made a social media post giving condolences to the family.
Ridge Meadows RCMP said the collision happened around 8:30 a.m. near the corner of 116A Avenue and 196B street, when Nicol was riding his bike to school.
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Paramedics and firefighters tried to revive the child, but they died at the scene.
“This is just so close to home,” neighbour Bernadette Sleeman told Global News.
“I feel for the parents, the firefighters today, the police force, the paramedics. My son is a firefighter, and they have to clean up and all of that, it’s just so overwhelming.”
Police said the truck driver stayed at the scene and is cooperating with police. Investigators don’t believe drugs or alcohol were a factor.
The crash came amid a fall storm, with rainfall warnings in effect across the region, and police say they are investigating whether rain and road conditions were factors in the crash.
“Our hearts and thoughts go out to the families of everyone involved,” RCMP Insp. Martin Guay said in a media release. “This is a tragic and devastating loss for our community.
Ridge Meadows RCMP’s Serious Crimes Unit is investigating, with support from the Integrated Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Service.
Police are still looking for witnesses and video shot in the area at the time of the collision.
Anyone with information is asked to call Ridge Meadows RCMP at 604-463-6251. Anyone who witnessed the tragedy and needs support is invited to call the RCMP’s Victim Services program at 604-467-7650.
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