Sixth Bourke street victim dies as Melbourne mayor promises a permanent memorial

The number of Bourke street victims increased by one as a 33-year-old Blackburn South woman died in a hospital at 7:30 p.m. on Monday. Her death increased the Bourke street victims' tally to six. News of death came on heels of Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle’s announcement of a permanent memorial for Bourke street victims.

Those mourning the victims placed flowers, photographs, teddy bears, wreaths and other items at various places in the area making makeshift memorials. SES, Red Cross and other volunteers carefully removed each flower and every other item for transportation after a traditional aboriginal smoking ceremony took place on Tuesday morning. They found a suspicious package outside the GPO building, which wrapped in gaffa tape. This resulted in clearing operations being suspended and the area being sealed for further investigation.

Locals took to Twitter to post about the latest events unfolding in the Bourke Street Mall area. Police cordoned off a section of Bourke street mall as bomb squad examined the package, believed to be a suitcase.

The bomb response unit cleared the area and opened it for civilians at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday. Pedestrians were allowed back in the Bourke street mall. Volunteers also resumed removing the flowers, transporting them to a truck nearby.

Melbourne’s Lord Mayor Doyle announced that the compost resulting from the organic material will be added to the Victims of Crime memorial near State Parliament. Other mementos would be preserved by his office as they took a decision about the site for a permanent memorial.

He said that along with Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews, he will zero in on a location for Bourke street victims. He added that it was a challenging task because there were nine sites where people had left flowers and gifts as tribute to the victims. “The Premier and I will take our time because we want to [get it] right and we want people to be comfortable with where we land,” said Doyle.

Andrews added that the world was watching Melbourne because of the tragedy that had taken place. “What we have here is a very powerful statement of love and compassion and it's now appropriate that this floral tribute is gathered up and that we find a permanent home," he added, states The Age.

The Bourke street tragedy saw a car mowing down pedestrians in the popular shopping area on Jan. 20. The victims include three-month-old Zachary, 10-year-old Thalia Hakin and three adults aged 22-33 years. Of these, four died on the scene. Baby Zachary died a day after the incident, while the sixth victim died on Monday. The car’s driver Dimitrious Gargasoulas, was arrested and charged on five counts of murder.