Warning contains distressing description of attack aftermath
TRANSCRIPT
It was meant to be a joyous celebration.
Instead, the Canadian city of Vancouver is now mourning after a devastating attack at the Lapu-Lapu Day Festival, where a man drove a black Audi SUV through a crowd, killing at least 11 people and injuring dozens more.
Police say the suspect, a 30-year-old local man known to authorities for mental health interactions, was arrested at the scene.
They have ruled out terrorism.
Steve Rai is Vancouver's interim police chief.
"This is the darkest day in our city's history. Last night, as thousands of members of Vancouver's Filipino community gathered for an important cultural celebration, the actions of a single person shattered our collective sense of safety. It is impossible to overstate how many lives have been impacted forever by this lone individual."
The attack happened shortly after 8pm on Saturday local time, when the festival was crowded.
The festival, celebrated especially in the central Philippines, honours Datu Lapu-Lapu, the Filipino chieftain who famously defeated Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and became a national hero.
Abigail Andiso was at the festival and saw the immediate aftermath of the attack.
"What I did is to go, for the, go towards the direction of the car, and then that's when I saw people, there's a lot more on the ground, and then, that's when I started telling to 911, please send us ambulance, send us ambulance. ... There's a car that went just through the whole street and just hitting everyone. and I saw one dead, one man on the ground, and I went, as I go further towards the end where the car went, then there's more casualties, and you can see straight away there's about 20, 30, maybe 20 people down, and everyone is panicking, everyone is screaming."
Another eyewitness, Dale Selipe, described walking through the horror moments later.
"So, i t's really sad because like I said they were all twisted bodies, some with head injuries, two kids that I saw, a baby and then also probably an 11-year-old child, like I said, three bodies were stuffed under the food truck and alongside with all bodies laying down on each side of the the strip."
Vancouver police confirmed that the critically injured were rushed to different hospitals, and warned the death toll could still rise.
Interim-chief Rai says it has been determined that this was not an act of terror.
"There are now 11 confirmed fatalities. We believe dozens more were injured, some seriously, and the number of dead could rise in the coming days or weeks. The most critically injured were transported by ambulance to nine different hospitals throughout metro Vancouver. ... The driver of the vehicle was the lone occupant, and he was arrested at the crime scene by members of the Vancouver Police Department after bystanders and witnesses intervened to detain him. He remains in custody. ... I can now say with confidence that the evidence in this case does not lead us to believe this was an act of terrorism."
Premier of British Columbia, David Eby, struggled to contain his emotions as he addressed reporters.
"It's hard for me, I have just such a sick feeling. It was about 24 hours ago, a few blocks from here, I was here with my daughter on stage with Mable and the organisers celebrating a community in this province that does nothing but give, has nothing but love. I don't think there's a British Columbian that hasn't been touched in some way by the Filipino community. You can't go to a place that delivers care in our province and not meet a member of that community."
Mr Eby vowed British Columbians would rally around the victims and their families.
"This is a community that is suffering right now. We're gonna put our arms around them as all British Columbians. We're going to stand with them and support them just like they support us every single day in this province. It's their turn. It's their turn to get care from us."
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney cancelled campaign events and posted a message on X, saying he was "devastated" and that "we are all mourning with you."
The attack has cast a heavy shadow over Canada’s federal election campaign, with voting set for Monday.
Political analyst John Beebe says the election was already unlike any other:
“There has never been an election where, you know, the fortunes of one political party and another political party have flipped as quickly and dramatically as we have seen over the last few months. This is an unprecedented election, because we do live in unprecedented times, and especially for Canada."]]
The police investigation into the Vancouver tragedy is ongoing, with more than 100 officers assigned.
Officials say there’s no motive yet, and they’re working with mental health experts.
As the city grieves, the Filipino community has vowed to rebuild, honouring the spirit of Lapu-Lapu - resistance, strength, and unity.
Premier Eby put it simply.
"This event does not define us and the Filipino community or that celebration that I know it's hard to believe it in this moment, but I know we will come back stronger. This is a community that has seen hardship and always comes back stronger, and we'll be there standing with the Filipino community in Vancouver and British Columbia to make sure that that's the case."
