Barbering student killed in crash

A cyclist who was fatally struck by a truck in Christchurch was on her way to her barber course, a colleague says.

Fyfa Dawson was killed in the collision with a truck at a 30kmh roadworks site in Springs Rd, Halswell, about 8am on Wednesday.

According to a workman at the scene, Dawson was crossing over the entrance of the work site when the truck driver, who was heading the same way, turned left and hit her. It is understood she died at the scene.

Signage leading up to the fatal scene warns motorists to take ‘‘extreme care’’ due to cyclists merging and trucks crossing.

There is a fenced gravel cycleway along Springs Rd, which has a break in it at the work site entrance. Dawson was using the cycleway when she was hit.

Stuff understands Dawson was studying a barbering course at Ara, which she began in February.

In a Facebook post, Ben Scott from Benny’s Barber Shop said Dawson was the first female barber on the Benny Barber Shop team. Scott said he was ‘‘blown away’’ by how much Dawson had affected the team in such a short time.

‘‘Tonight we sat round the shop after work and talked about you. There was tears, there was laughter. We talked about you and your [quirkiness]. We sat and listened to your favourite song and just remembered the good times with you round.’’

In a media release issued by Ara in April, Dawson said barbering gave her a ‘‘fascinating’’ insight into how men deal with their emotions.

‘‘It’s such an intimate thing to cut someone’s hair and touching their head and while you do that you can listen, talk and get them to open up to you.

‘‘It was really fascinating and interesting to talk about how men in New Zealand culture deal with their emotions.’’

Ara corporate services deputy chief executive Darren Mitchell said support was being provided to staff and Dawson’s classmates in what was ‘‘a challenging time’’.

Dawson was a keen table tennis player in her younger years. Between 2011 and 2016, she was one of Table Tennis Canterbury’s top players and represented Canterbury at national champs.

The organisation posted a tribute to Dawson on its Facebook page. The police serious crash unit continues to investigate.