Car drove into crowds during festival in Vancouver – at least nine dead

Shortly after 20 o’clock on Saturday local time, a black SUV drove into a crowd with visitors to the Fillipian street festival Lapu Lapu Block Party in Vancouver in Canada.

The festival had attracted up to 100,000 people during the day, and was just about to close when the car drove straight into people moving between food stands and food trucks.

At least nine people died and many were injured, police confirm on X.

Yoseb Vardeh, Who worked in a food truck, describes that he first did not understand what was happening when he heard an engine rush.

– I looked up and saw people fly, it happened so quickly, he tells the local newspaper Vancouver Sun.

Afterwards, injured and dead people remained on the street.

– I went out of my food truck and looked down the road and there were just bodies everywhere, Yoseb continues Vardeh.

The 30-year-old man who drove the car was held by festival visitors. He could then be arrested by police. The police say that the man is known by them before, but says they are convinced that it is not a terrorist crime.

Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney states in a post on X that he is devastated:

« I send my deepest condolences to the relatives to those killed and injured, » he writes.

On Monday, Canada holds new elections.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, who was elected to succeed Justin Trudeau as party leader for the Liberal Party as late as March, states that his party’s election campaign is affected and delayed after the incident.