A Queensland mother already dealing with her partner's recent cancer treatment has lost her daughter, after the teenager was hit by a maxi-taxi while riding her bicycle west of Brisbane.
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Danielle Butterfield, 14, died in Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital on Wednesday and has been described by loved ones as a "happy, cheeky, cheerful" 14-year-old and talented horse rider.
She was hit on Mount Tarampa Road in Mount Tarampa, 80 kilometres west of Brisbane, about 4.20pm on Monday less than a kilometre from home, according to a family friend.
She was airlifted to the Brisbane hospital in a critical condition, having suffered serious head injuries in the collision, but died about 10am on Wednesday.
Close family friend Joyce Wilkinson said she had known Danielle since she was two years old and considered her a second daughter.
"She was always a happy, cheeky, cheerful ... and quite the madam when she was younger," Ms Wilkinson said.
"Her mum and family had moved away for a little while ... but had spent a fair bit of time with me over the past month since she first moved back here.
"She was a talented horse rider and had done very well in (the) polocrosse world.
"She was always happy, always helped others and always a sweet kid ... I’ll remember her as another daughter to me, her mother and I are very good friends.
"(The accident) was something that should have never happened; it's going to affect a lot of people."
The Butterfield family was "devastated", according to Ms Wilkinson, and Danielle left behind two older brothers and an older sister.
Her step-father had recently undergone substantial cancer treatment, Ms Wilkinson said.
"It's just one blow after another and this was a really unnecessary thing to have happened, it's heartbreaking for Belinda [Danielle's mother]," Ms Wilkinson said.
"Danielle was her youngest daughter and her rock when she was having a bad day."
The teenager underwent surgery overnight on Monday after arriving at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital and Ms Wilkinson spent Tuesday at her bedside with her family.
"It was gut-wrenching and heartbreaking to have to watch and be there with her," Ms Wilkinson said.
"She will be sorely missed and always in our hearts."
A GoFundMe page has been set up to support the Butterfield family and pay for Danielle's funeral and her mother posted several tributes on Facebook.
"I would like to say thank you everyone. We are going to make Danielle's day so special and this will be done with all your support," Ms Butterfield wrote.
"This is unbelievable, for (the) last few months our family has been battling with the cancer disease with Gibbo than (sic) Monday afternoon our beautiful young girl went off to do what she loved, and that was to visit her baby horse, but unfortunately she didn’t make the short distance, within minutes our baby girl was taken away from us.
"My worst nightmare was losing Gibbo to cancer and still is as it’s still not at an end, whoever thought I would lose my Danielle ... she was my strength, my support, my shoulder to cry on, she held me, she guarded me.
"I am so lost without her, I think how am I going to cope through times without her. Her dreams were my dreams, now that tunnel feels so empty, none of those dreams feel like they have a purpose now."
