Nine People Die in a Mass Crash in Vancouver
Victims at the Lapu Lapu Festival, Vancouver, Canada, April 27, 2025. X/ @Hak_2861
April 27, 2025 Hour: 8:36 am
‘I am devastated by what I have heard about the horrific events at Vancouver’s Lapu Lapu Festival,’ PM Carney said.
On Sunday, the Vancouver Police reported that nine people died in the mass vehicular attack that took place late Saturday.
RELATED:
Canada and the U.S. Prepare to Negotiate a New Trade Agreement
“At this time, we can confirm that nine people have died after a man drove into a crowd last night at the Lapu Lapu Festival. Our thoughts are with those affected by this tragic incident,” the police authorities said.
Earlier, the police stated that they are convinced the incident is not an act of terrorism and that the alleged perpetrator of the mass attack is a 30-year-old man who was arrested at the scene.
The attack occurred around 8:14 p.m. local time on Saturday on a busy street in Vancouver during the closing moments of Lapu Lapu, the street festival of the Filipino-Canadian community. A witness to the accident told the Canadian public broadcaster that he saw a vehicle accelerate in order to plow at full speed into the pedestrians participating in the street festival.
The acting chief of the Vancouver Police, Steve Rai, explained that the alleged perpetrator was held at the scene by people attending Lapu Lapu until the police arrived. Rai also stated that the suspect was known to authorities. “We are aware of some interactions in recent days,” he said.
“I am devastated by what I have heard about the horrific events at Vancouver’s Lapu Lapu Festival. I offer my deepest condolences to the loved ones of the deceased and injured, to the Filipino-Canadian community, and to everyone in Vancouver,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said via social media.
The mass vehicular attack comes just days before general elections are set to be held in the country on Monday. Jagmeet Singh, leader of the social democratic New Democratic Party (NDP), the third-largest national political party, was at the festival at the moment the vehicle charged into the crowd. “I have no words to describe what I saw. I don’t know what to say, it’s simply horrific. I am devastated,” he said.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
