Nathan Anderson, 32, died after being struck on his bicycle on Carling Avenue earlier this month.Nathan Anderson, 32, died after being struck on his bicycle on Carling Avenue earlier this month. (Waubgeshig Rice/CBC)

The family of a cyclist who died last weekend after a collision with a car earlier this month issued a statement Wednesday thanking everyone who worked hard to save his life.

Nathan William Anderson, 32, died in hospital Sunday, almost three weeks after he was struck near the intersection of Carling Avenue and Kirkwood Avenue.

The impact of the Feb. 2 collision threw Anderson off his bicycle. He was wearing a helmet, but sustained severe head injuries.

A 44-year-old Ottawa man was later charged with impaired operation of a motor vehicle and dangerous driving causing bodily harm, which was later upgraded to dangerous driving causing death.

Anderson's family asked for privacy during their difficult time, police said, but they issued the following statement through the Ottawa police:

The parents, sister and extended family of Nathan William Anderson, citizen of Ottawa and committed cyclist, would like to thank the people of Ottawa who worked so diligently to protect his life.

We thank the employees of the LCBO who acted so quickly to notify the police of the danger. Our gratitude goes out to all the police officers and emergency services personnel who were so close and acted so quickly that they managed to get Nathan to the trauma unit with his heart still beating.

For days, the Ottawa Civic hospital staff devoted their skills and efforts to treating and watching over Nathan 24 hours a day, trying to save him. We will never forget their devotion or their compassion toward their patient and this family.

In spite of losing him, we will remember Ottawa as the city Nathan preferred to live in and to get around by biking, walking and using public transit.

Please keep on doing whatever you can to keep the streets of Ottawa safe for its cyclists and pedestrians.