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A woman cyclist was killed after being struck by a lorry just yards from the Bank of England in horrific scenes today.

The 26-year-old cyclist was struck by a tipper lorry at one of the City’s busiest junctions at the height of this morning’s rush hour.

Doctors and paramedics carried out emergency treatment in the middle of Bank junction as fire crews held blue tarpaulin screens around the victim.

The young woman died from head injuries around 40 minutes after the accident despite desperate efforts to save her.

All roads leading into the junction were closed to traffic following the incident at 9am.

The woman is the eighth cyclist to die on London’s roads so far this year. Six of the victims have been women and seven deaths have involved lorries.

One witness said: “I must have left the Tube seconds after it happened. I saw people - passers-by- trying to help her as she was trapped under the wheels.

“Then ambulance crews arrived and they must have been working on her behind a tarpaulin. It was horrible. She would have left home this morning going to work and now she’s dead. Makes you realise how fragile life is.”

Christian Stanley, who works in insurance, said: “I came out the tube and heard a crunch and heard people screaming. I ran over to her. She wasn’t conscious. The driver came out and looked shocked.

“People were gathering around and screaming. She was about 25-35. It was horrendous.”

The female cyclist involved in a collision at #Bank junction has sadly died — City Police (@CityPolice) June 22, 2015

Another witness, Allan Williams, said on Twitter: “V distressing at Bank, where there’s been another incident with cyclist and lorry. CPR taking place, lorry driver distraught.”

Charlie Lloyd, spokesman for the London Cycling Campaign, described the junction as "frightening" as he called for it to be completely pedestrianised.

He said: "I think everyone coming through that junction knows it is horrendous. This junction is at the heart of the city. It would make a fantastic pedestrianised space. There is no need for road traffic. It should be made wonderful and not frightening."

Donnachadh McCarthy, spokesman for campaign group Stop Killing Cyclists, said the local authority had made no investment to improve the junction's safety despite repeated calls from campaigners.

He said: "It is one of the most dangerous junctions in the City of London and almost nothing has been done about it. "

Commenting on today's tragedy, he said: "This is the third time in two weeks we have to send our condolences to the family of a cyclist. We are just gutted for them. Three times in two weeks is just too much."

London Ambulance Service said it sent an ambulance crew and the air ambulance to the scene after being alerted at 9am.

A spokeswoman said: “Sadly, despite the extensive efforts of our crew, a woman was pronounced dead at the scene.”

The driver of the blue and yellow lorry was still talking to police officers an hour after the incident. At the time he had not been arrested.

The incident comes two years after the City of London Corporation agreed to implement new road safety measures for pedestrians and cyclists at the Bank junction.

The corporation admitted that the junction, a meeting point for six major roads, was a hotspot for collisions involving cyclists.

One of the two most recent incidents was in Camberwell on May 29 when physiotherapist Esther Hartsilver died.

On April 9, Moira Gemmill, 55, a leading figure in the arts and design world, was killed in a collision with a tipper truck close to Lambeth Bridge in Westminster.

A City of London Police spokesman said officers were called to reports of a road traffic collision involving a female pedal cyclist and a tipper truck at Bank Junction at 8.59am. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene at 9.42am.