Live Reporting
Edited by Johanna Chisholm
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Vancouver ‘in shock’, city councillor sayspublished at 10:30 British Summer Time
Vancouver City Councillor Peter Fry has been telling the
BBC that he feels “profound grief” over the incident that is “unprecedented in our city”.He had been at the Lapu Lapu Day celebrations for a
number of hours on Saturday, before the attack took place, and he describes it as
a “fantastic event”.“To see it turn so horrible so quickly and unexpectedly
has, I think, the entire city in shock.”Fry says the event took place in a more residential part
of the city, where fewer tourists go, and therefore the layout of the event was
more “porous”, which could have been a factor in the incident.He adds that he does not believe the Filipino community
was targeted specifically.
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Festival host says they’re heartbroken by ‘senseless tragedy’published at 10:12 British Summer Time
Filipino BC, the group that hosts the local Lapu Lapu Day festival, says they are devastated for the families and victims.
“We are still finding the words to express the deep heartbreak brought on by this senseless tragedy,” the group says.
“We encourage everyone to check in, support and hold each other,” they add.
“Do not hesitate to access resources available. You are not alone.”
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What we know so farpublished at 09:54 British Summer Time
Emergency services are still responding to what police are calling a “mass casualty incident” in Vancouver, Canada.
Here’s what we know so far:
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The incident happened shortly after 20:00 local time on Saturday (03:00 GMT, 04:00 BST on Sunday) during the Filipino community’s annual Lapu Lapu Day festival
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Witnesses say a man drove through a street full of people and lined with food trucks
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Police say there are “multiple” fatalities and injuries, but haven’t given specific numbers
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A 30-year-old man from Vancouver is now in custody
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Police say they are confident this was not an act of terrorism
It’s already past midnight in Vancouver, and police say they’ll give an update in the morning.
Stay with us as we bring you all the key developments.
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Vancouver Police ‘confident incident was not act of terrorism’published at 09:42 British Summer Time
Breaking
Vancouver Police have just posted another update on their social media.
“At this time, we are confident that this incident was not an act of terrorism,” it says.
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‘It was such a beautiful celebration, such a family event’ – NDP leader recallspublished at 09:29 British Summer Time
Earlier we brought you a statement from NDP leader Jagmeet Singh – who was attending the Lapu Lapu Day block party before the incident unfolded.
He’s since been filmed at a separate event where he has provided fresh reaction to the news that a man drove his SUV through a crowd of people.
“It keeps on playing through my mind,” he says in a video shared on social media, as he reflects on the happiness of children attending the family event.
“The kids that were having such an amazing time, such joy, the incredible warmth of the people there. I just keep playing through my head such a beautiful celebration and such a family event – people coming together from all ages.
“No event deserves violence, obviously. It is horrible.
“Just imagine that joy with the contrast of the horrible death and destruction to happen at an event like that is something I can’t comprehend.”
Image source, Reuters -
What is Lapu Lapu Day?published at 09:18 British Summer Time
Image source, Noel Celis/AFP via Getty ImagesImage caption, Lapu-Lapu is regarded as the first indigenous Filipino to resist Spanish colonisation
Lapu-Lapu Day is celebrated every year in the Philippines on 27 April. It marks the memory of Lapu-Lapu, a national hero who stood up against Spanish colonisation.
The festival was officially set up in Vancouver in 2023. A statement on its website says, “the declaration not only honours the heroic legacy of Datu Lapu-Lapu but also symbolizes the cultural harmony and mutual respect that thrive in the province of British Columbia.”
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Witness says car drove straight through a crowdpublished at 09:06 British Summer Time
Yoseb Vardeh, co-owner of the Bao Buns food truck, was at the scene.
As we’ve been reporting, the incident happened during the Lapu Lapu Day festival. Vardeh tells BBC World Service’s Weekend programme that the final live performance of the day, the main event, had just finished when a car drove through a narrow street lined with food trucks, including his, “completely straight, right through the crowd”.
Yoseb says the vehicle was going about 100km/h (62mph).
He says the driver stopped, tried to run away, and – as he understands it – was caught by people nearby.
“I think he was going for maximum damage,” he says, adding that the driver killed some of his customers.
“I just saw bodies underneath people’s food trucks, and husbands crying out for their wife, or their kids, it was just horrible.”
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Green Party co-leader ‘horrified and heartbroken’published at 08:52 British Summer Time
Image source, ReutersElizabeth May, co-leader of Canada’s Green Party, has also taken to social media in the last few hours to express her condolences about the incident.
“My prayers are with Vancouver and its Filipino community as we hold our breath waiting to hear more about the tragedy that took place at Lapu Lapu Day in south Vancouver tonight,” she says.
“I’m horrified and heartbroken that such an attack could occur, and on an occasion celebrating Filipino culture, resilience, and resistance. I am sending my love to affected families.”
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Where the incident happenedpublished at 08:52 British Summer Time
As we’ve been reporting, a man in an SUV drove into a crowd of people who were gathered for a Filipino festival being held in Vancouver at approximately 20:00 local time (04:00 BST), police say.
Filipino BC, the group that hosts the local Lapu Lapu Day festival in Vancouver, shared a map on their website ahead of the festival to show attendees where the block party would be taking place.
Lapu Lapu Day is one of the biggest celebrations in the Philippines and was officially recognised by British Columbia two years ago.
Below is the map from the Lapu Lapu Day website, which highlights a section of road where the festival was happening. It aligns with where police said the incident took place on E. 43rd Avenue and Fraser St.
Image source, Lapu Lapu Day -
Suspect was known to police in ‘certain circumstances’, police saypublished at 08:43 British Summer Time
Image source, ReutersLet’s quickly round-up some more key comments from the Vancouver Police’s news conference:
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Police are working through how the incident in Vancouver unfolded and will have more details in the morning
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Acting Police Chief Steve Rai has said they are dealing with mass casualties with and says there are “multiple injured” and “multiple fatalities”
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“There are still family members who need to be contacted,” he added
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Rai has said he did not want to be “unfair to families by putting out numbers that we aren’t even sure on yet”
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The 30-year-old suspect was “known to police in certain circumstances” – although he would not elaborate further
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Prior to police arrival the suspect was “taken into custody by people in the crowd”
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The Lapu Lapu Day event went through a “robust security assessment”Rai said
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Further update to be given laterpublished at 08:22 British Summer Time
The brief press conference has ended, with police confirming another update will be given later in the morning local time.
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‘One suspect, one vehicle’ – police chief sayspublished at 08:22 British Summer Time
“One suspect, one vehicle,” Steve Rai tells reporters when asked whether police are looking for anyone else.
Rai is asked whether the 30-year-old suspect has a criminal record.
“It would be inappropriate for me to get into those kind of details at this point,” Rai says adding it would be “unfair” to make comments on whether the suspect was on bail.
He insists the focus remains on the victims and their families.
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Police asked about Canadian election connectionpublished at 08:19 British Summer Time
Steve Rai is asked whether the incident has anything to do with the upcoming federal election.
He responds by saying “I don’t know anything about that”.
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Police chief takes questions from reporters at the crime scenepublished at 08:16 British Summer Time
Acting Police Chief Steve Rai has been taking some questions at the crime scene in Vancouver.
Stay with us as we bring you the latest from his update.
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Police investigating a ‘mass casualty incident’ in Vancouverpublished at 08:09 British Summer Time
Breaking
Vancouver Police say they’re investigating a “mass casualty incident” after several people were killed and others injured.
A 30-year-old man from Vancouver was arrested at the scene, according to a statement released in the last few minutes.
At around 20:14 local time (04:14 BST), a man drove into a large crowd at the Lapu Lapu Day Festival near East 43rd Avenue and Fraser Street, the statement adds.
Earlier, police had said the incident took place at East 41st Avenue and Fraser Street.
The investigation is ongoing, and police are asking anyone with information to contact them.
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‘Horrifying news from the heart of our neighbourhood,’ MP sayspublished at 07:53 British Summer Time
Harjit Sajjan, MP for Vancouver South, says the incident that unfolded at the city’s Lapu Lapu Day block party hit in “the heart of our neighbourhood”.
“As we await more information our thoughts are with our friends and neighbours in Van South who were celebrating at Lapu Lapu today,” he says.
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Photos show police at the scene in Vancouverpublished at 07:32 British Summer Time
We’re now seeing images from the scene in Vancouver where the incident occurred.
Police officers can be seen cordoning off the area, with the street seeming to be mostly empty, apart from some parked cars and first responders who remain at the scene.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters -
Police to provide update on Vancouver incident within the hourpublished at 07:27 British Summer Time
Local media in Canada are now reporting that police will hold a public update at midnight local time (08:00 BST).
Stay with us as we bring you the key lines from the statement.
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‘My thoughts with Filipino community’ – Conservative leader Pierre Poilievrepublished at 07:24 British Summer Time
Image source, ReutersCanada’s Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre says he is shocked by the “horrific news” of the incident in Vancouver.
“My thoughts are with the Filipino community and all the victims targeted by this senseless attack,” he says.
The Lapu Lapu Day block party, which is where people were gathered in Vancouver when a man drove a car into a crowd, is a festival put on by British Columbia’s Filipino community.
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Canadian PM Mark Carney ‘devastated’ about deadly incidentpublished at 07:19 British Summer Time
Image source, ReutersCanadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who is the incumbent in Monday’s federal election, has written on X that he is “devastated” to learn about the events at the Lapu Lapu festival in Vancouver.
“I offer my deepest condolences to the loved ones of those killed and injured, to the Filipino Canadian community, and to everyone in Vancouver. We are all mourning with you,” he says.
“We are monitoring the situation closely, and thankful to our first responders for their swift action.”
