Man walking in Central Park struck and killed by cyclist

A family is grieving the loss of a husband and father of two who was struck and killed by a cyclist last week in Central Park.

Police said Richie O'Brien, 41, was walking through the park on East Drive near 84th Street on Wednesday when he was hit by a 32-year-old cyclist who was traveling northbound. The impact knocked O'Brien to the ground and threw the cyclist from his bike. He suffered minor minor injuries.

Friend and co-worker Casey Bartels said O'Brien was on his way to work as a steamfitter at the Metropolitan Museum of Art when he was hit. He died four days later.

"It's tough. His wife and his daughters, their whole life for the next, you know, 80 years has changed because they lost this great man," Bartels said. "Rich was a great man. He was a great father. Everything he did was for his family."

As O'Brien's family grieves, his friends are honoring his memory and raising money to help his family.

"His family faces an uphill battle. He was the breadwinner for the family," Bartels said.

Others in Central Park reflect on the tragedy

"The onus is on the cyclist also to make sure they're looking out and not hitting anybody at a high speed," cyclist Tanya Madorsky said.

Dan Fieber said he had a close encounter before he spoke to CBS News New York.

"A few minutes ago, we almost got clipped by a cyclist going the wrong way," he said.

Fieber said it's time to enforce the park rules to increase safety.

"It's terrible. I mean, I'm a father of soon-to-be two and, yeah, I can't even imagine," he said.