Vancouver's Filipino community mourns after Lapu-Lapu Day festival tragedy
SUV driver charged with 8 counts of second-degree murder in relation to the incident
A large crowd gathered Sunday evening at Kensington Community Centre in Vancouver to mourn the 11 people killed and dozens more injured after a driver of a black SUV drove into a Filipino street festival in the city's Sunset neighbourhood on Saturday.
The vigil came as police identified the man charged in connection with what interim police chief Steve Rai called "the darkest day in the city's history."
Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 30, has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder in relation to the crash, according to Vancouver Police Department.
Many at Sunday's ceremony lit candles and placed flowers to honour the victims of the tragedy at Saturday's Lapu-Lapu Day Block Party.
"When something senseless like this happens, there's a yearning to be with the community and do what we can," said Celine Bacani, owner of Lee's Donuts shop on Granville Island.
"Our focus right now is on the victims. There are a lot of unanswered questions and confusion, but it's more important to come together to support victims and their families."
The chair of Filipino BC, the group that organized the event, told those gathered that the loss is still difficult to comprehend.
"I haven't slept and I know many others haven't," RJ Aquino said. "We had a good time yesterday, it was a great event. A lot of us are still numb, angry, confused and devastated. Some of us don't even know what to feel."
Aquino said the organization has been working around the clock to ensure volunteers and participants have been accounted for.
Salia Joseph, member of the Squamish Nation, offered words of support to the Filipino community.
"Our home is your home, our grief is your grief," Joseph said.
"When somebody suffers in our territories, we all suffer. We want to wrap a blanket of prayer around your people at this time."
A temporary memorial has taken shape at the park near Kensington Community Centre, where attendees placed flowers, cards, and handwritten notes. Organizers say those tributes will eventually be moved to a memorial closer to the site of Saturday's tragic incident.
Warning over scam fundraisers
In a post on Facebook on Sunday afternoon, the Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver warned the public about fraudulent fundraising campaigns that have emerged online in the wake of the tragedy.
The consulate said it has not created or authorized any fundraising efforts related to the Lapu-Lapu Day incident, despite some GoFundMe pages using the consulate's official message as part of their promotions.
"The public is advised to exercise vigilance and prudence to avoid being victimized by unscrupulous and malicious actors attempting to exploit this tragedy," the post read.
Organizers say they are focused on supporting the victims, survivors and their families, and that updates about verified support efforts will be shared later.
Statistics Canada says more than 174,000 people of Filipino descent represent 3.5 per cent of the province's total population, and they're the third-largest cultural group in B.C. behind those of South Asian and Chinese ancestry.
With files from Sohrab Sandhu, Akshay Kulkarni and Shaurya Kshatri