At least nine people have been killed after a car was driven into a crowd at a street festival in Vancouver, police have confirmed.
Authorities in the western Canadian city said “multiple others” were injured during the incident, which occurred at approximately 20:14 local time on Saturday (03:14 GMT on Sunday).
A 30-year-old male suspect is in custody and the Vancouver Police Department said it was “confident that this incident was not an act of terrorism”. An investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Police said the suspect had driven into pedestrians at the annual Lapu Lapu festival, which celebrates Filipino culture, at East 43rd Avenue and Fraser in the south of the city.
Steve Rai, Vancouver Police’s interim chief, told a news conference that there had been one vehicle and one suspect involved in the incident. He said more details would be released in the morning.
The owner of a food truck selling bao buns at the festival, Yoseb Vardeh, told the BBC World Service that the attack happened right in front of his van.
“This guy, he killed some of my customers,” he said. “There was people waiting for their buns that got hit.”
Mr Vardeh added: “I stepped outside of my food truck and I just saw bodies underneath people’s food trucks, husbands crying out for their wives or their kids… it was just horrible.”
Unverified footage posted on social media showed a number of police cars, ambulances and fire engines at the scene, with injured people lying on the ground.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement on X that he was “devastated to hear about the horrific events”.
He continued: “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 also thanked emergency responders for their “swift action”. The Liberal Party, of which he is the leader, later confirmed his campaign events ahead of Monday’s national election would be paused on Sunday morning in light of the tragedy.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said he was “shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific incident”, adding in a post that his “thoughts are with all those affected and with Vancouver’s Filipino community during this incredibly difficult time.”
One of Vancouver’s city councillors, Peter Fry, told the BBC that local residents were struggling to process what had happened.
“This celebration was a huge, fun, vibrant, family-orientated street party, and it was a fantastic event. To see it turn so horrible so quickly and unexpectedly has, I think, our entire city is in shock,” he said.
Harjit Sajjan, who represented Vancouver South as a Liberal MP but is not seeking re-election this year, described events as “absolutely tragic” and said he would be supporting “the community as best as we can.”
Lapu Lapu Day is celebrated every year in the Philippines on 27 April to commemorate Lapu-Lapu, a national hero who resisted Spanish colonisation.
The festival was officially set up in Vancouver – which is home to 141,230 Canadians of Filipino descent – in 2023. Its website says it “symbolises the cultural harmony and mutual respect that thrive in the province of British Columbia”.
Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr said he was “shattered to hear about the terrible incident”, adding that the Philippine consulate general would work with Canadian authorities to ensure the tragedy was thoroughly investigated.
King Charles III, who is also head of state of Canada, said he and Queen Camilla were “profoundly saddened to learn of the dreadful attack and utterly tragic loss of life in Vancouver”.
He added in a statement: “Our hearts and prayers go out to all those whose lives have been shattered by such a desperate tragedy and we send our deepest possible sympathy at a most agoinising time for so many in Canada.”
Leaders of different Canadian political parties have also shared messages of condolence.
Pierre Poilievre, leader of Canada’s Conservative Party, called the incident a “senseless attack”, while the leader of the British Columbia New Democratic Party, David Eby, said he was “shocked and heartbroken”.
New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh – who had attended the festival but was not present when the incident occurred – said he was “horrified to learn” that innocent people had been killed and injured.
“As we wait to learn more, our thoughts are with the victims and their families – and Vancouver’s Filipino community, who were coming together today to celebrate resilience,” he added.
Singh, Poilievre and Carney are all running in Canada’s federal election on Monday. Singh’s constituency of Burnaby Central lies just east of where the incident took place.
