Motorists should please avoid Meyer Street, where a great tragedy unfolded minutes ago when a young girl riding a bicycle with her brother on Meyer Street was struck and killed by a truck.

Meyer Street heading towards Kanonkop will be closed for some time for police and forensic specialists to investigate the tragedy.

According to an eyewitness who saw the tragedy unfold, she and her husband were watching the brother and sister crossing the street on their bicycles when the truck barrelled towards them.

The eyewitness said the truck was allegedly travelling above the speed limit and that there was no time to avoid the accident.

The witness said the young boy made it onto the pavement, with his sister in tow.

The girl, however, could not make it onto the pavement in time before being struck.

The truck came to a halt on the pavement, with the girl’s body and bike landing in front of it.

The eyewitness said that after striking the girl, the truck drove over both her and the bicycle.

Her brother rushed to her aid, leaving his blue bicycle just a metre away from his sister’s pink one in the street.

Bystanders covered the girl’s body with a jacket before a Samaritan arrived with a blanket to also cover the girl’s exposed feet.

The girl’s distraught family members arrived on the scene shortly after the accident.

Her father is currently in Turkey, and making his way home.

Screams of anguish could be heard blocks away as family members gathered.

The girl’s family are respected members of the CBD’s Community Policing Forum (CPF).

Crying CPF members are supporting the family on the scene, while the police conduct a thorough investigation.

It’s currently unclear when Meyer Street will reopen.

For now, only the lanes from town towards Kanonkop are affected.

Out of respect for the family, photos of the scene have been heavily edited.