On the eve of Canada’s federal election, a weekend car ramming attack claimed the lives of 11 people between the ages of 5 and 65 at a Filipino heritage festival in Vancouver. Dozens were injured in the aftermath, some critically, according to AP News.
“It is the darkest day in Vancouver’s history,” Police Interim Chief Steve Rai said at a news conference. “The person we have in custody does have a significant history of interactions with police and health care professionals related to mental health,” he added about Kai-Ji Adam Lo, the 30-year-old man charged with eight counts of second degree murder so far.
Vancouver Filipino festival death toll expected to rise: Victims yet to be ID’d
By Sunday evening, authorities had not revealed the names of the victims. However, the first official disclosure confirmed that the youngest to be killed in the Vancouver tragedy was a merely a 5-year-old child.
The Saturday massacre took place at the Lapu Lapu Day Block Party in Vancouver as the accused driving a black Audi SUV struck people while celebrations were in full swing on the street just after 8 pm. Some victims “have not yet been identified,” Rai told reporters during the Sunday afternoon update, adding that the death toll could potentially rise in the next few days.
On Sunday, hundreds came together for a vigil to honour the victims of the Filipino festival attack. In the aftermath, a visual of the driver’s SUV shows is front had been smashed in after plowed through the crowd.
“He slammed on the gas, barreled through the crowd,” a witness detailed the account. “And all I can remember is seeing bodies flying up in the air higher than the food trucks themselves and landing on the ground and people yelling and screaming. It looked like a bowling ball hitting bowling pins and all the pins are flying into the air.”