Local officials hope reforms will prevent another tragedy in the Iowa Great Lakes. Iryna Shevchuk, a 20-year-old student worker from Ukraine, was struck by a vehicle as she was riding her bicycle along Highway 71 in June 2015.
Local businesses and the Iowa Great Lakes Chamber of Commerce are working together to make the summer safer for international students who travel the area on bicycles.
An informational meeting for area businesses employing J1 Visa international students will take place at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 21, at Hedberg Theatre located within the Maritime Museum building in Arnolds Park.
Chamber officials were in the process of developing local safety reforms when a local driver failed to see Iryna Shevchuk on her bicycle a summer ago. The 20-year-old from the Ukraine had a pair of jobs in the Iowa Great Lake and was returning to her temporary home in Arnolds Park at around midnight. Investigators think the driver was unable to see the bicyclists along U.S. Highway 71 because the international riders were wearing dark clothing. They didn't have helmets, lights or reflectors.
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