CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - A vigil was held Monday in Cambridge for two bicyclists who died after they were struck by vehicles in the city just two weeks apart this month.
On Friday morning, Minh-Thi Nguyen, a 24-year-old MIT graduate student who had an “unbreakable spirit,” according to her family, was fatally hit by a box truck at the intersection of Hampshire and Portland streets.
The Middlesex District Attorney’s office said both the truck and Nguyen were traveling in the same direction on Hampshire Street when the truck began turning right onto Portland Street.
Nguyen was struck by the truck and taken to Massachusetts General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, the DA’s office said.
“Minh-Thi was known for her kindness, her humility, her brilliance. Everyone who knew her had a unique, special relationship with her,” one friend said at the vigil.
“Minh-Thi was incredibly bright, enthusiastic, and courageous,” another friend said. “She was constantly planning the next ski trip, dinner party, or weekend getaway, and these were always overflowing with friends.”
Just two weeks prior, on June 7, a 55-year-old Florida woman died after she was hit by a box truck at the intersection of Mt. Auburn and DeWolf streets, according to the DA’s office. The truck was turning onto DeWolf Street when she was hit.
The woman was taken to a Cambridge hospital, where she was pronounced dead, the DA said.
The Florida woman’s name was not publicly released.
Chris Cassa, of Cambridge Bicycle Safety, said more needs to be done in the city to keep bicyclists safe.
“It’s just incredibly challenging to know that we may not have done enough in the right amount of time, and we need to do whatever we can to prevent something like this from happening again,” Cassa said.
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