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A public vigil for the seven-year-old London girl who died after being swept away in the storm-swollen Thames River is set for Sunday outside her elementary school.
More than 450 Facebook users had as of Wednesday expressed interest in attending the vigil for Anna Bielli, whose body was recovered by emergency crews on Sunday after a three-day search of the river.
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The event is being organized by community members with the approval of Bielli’s mother.
Bielli went missing after entering the river about 300 metres east of the Adelaide Street bridge in northeast London on Aug. 1. Her body was found in the river Sunday afternoon near Western University, London police said.
The three-day search of the river involved several agencies, including London police, firefighters and Ontario Provincial Police, along with dozens of civilian volunteers.
In a Free Press interview earlier this week, her mother expressed gratitude to those who searched the waters.
“I was hoping there was a chance she was still alive, but I was relieved when they found her,” Karen Fermill said. “I didn’t want to lose her forever in the water.”
An impromptu memorial for the Northbrae elementary school pupil emerged Sunday on the walkway along the Adelaide Street bridge, near where she went into the water, with balloons and stuffed animals placed along the bridge railing.
The candlelight vigil is set for Sunday at 3 p.m. in the field of Northbrae public school in northeast London, 335 Belfield St.
Organizers are asking anyone who plans to attend to bring their own candles and bubbles. Attendees are also encouraged to wear pink, Bielli’s favourite colour.
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