B.C. report urges greater support for community organizers in aftermath of Lapu-Lapu Day festival tragedy

Edzi'u Loverin · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 09, 2025 5:46 PM EDT | Last Updated: July 10

The study of a B.C. committee created successful the aftermath of the tragic events astatine a Filipino thoroughfare festival successful Vancouver has recommended the state amended enactment assemblage organizers done accrued entree to information grooming and grants to offset information costs.

The Commission of Inquiry into Community Events Safety, headed by erstwhile main justness Christopher Hinkson, was established by the state aft aggregate deaths and injuries during an alleged onslaught astatine a Filipino assemblage lawsuit connected April 26.

Eleven radical died astatine the Lapu-Lapu Day Block Party, with dozens much injured, aft the accused Kai-ji Adam Lo, 30, rammed an SUV into a assemblage of people.

WATCH | Report released into lawsuit information successful B.C.: 

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim says the City of Vancouver wasn't asked for input connected the report.

"It is simply a small unfortunate, and it is disappointing that we weren't consulted successful a meaningful way. This lawsuit happened successful our backyard, and the City of Vancouver, we person a batch to connection done our experience," said Sim.

It's been reported Lo had aggregate interactions with constabulary and suffered with his intelligence wellness earlier the Lapu-Lapu Day tragedy.

Lo's adjacent tribunal quality connected July 23 is for a proceeding to measure his intelligence fittingness to basal trial.

The commission, which looked astatine festival information successful general, heard from municipalities crossed the province, determination districts, Indigenous partners, police, and lawsuit organizers from a wide scope of communities, yet making six recommendations aimed astatine improving information outcomes for assemblage events successful the province.

But the study says the request to analyse the availability of intelligence wellness services successful the province, though critical, fell extracurricular the commission's scope.

"The lasting trauma experienced by victims, families, and communities remains a solemn reminder of what is astatine involvement successful nationalist information planning," said Hinkson.

"However, the Lapu-Lapu Day incidental itself is the taxable of an ongoing transgression probe and was excluded from the commission's mandate."

Report Recommendations

The 67-page study recommends amended collaboration betwixt lawsuit organizers and exigency unit that would see regular assessments aft nationalist events.

The study suggested the state provide more opportunities for festival organizers to entree backing to assistance wage for information measures astatine their events, specified arsenic fencing, barriers and postulation control, arsenic good arsenic found wide criteria that specify roles and responsibilities for the lawsuit during planning.

Hinkson recommended each nationalist events successful B.C. see a mandatory hazard appraisal that takes into relationship an event's scale, location, activities, and imaginable hazards, and calls connected the state to make a centralized hub for lawsuit information wherever lawsuit organizers tin find standardized advice, training, and applicable tools.

Vancouver has implicit 2,200 events per year, positive different 1,000 protests, and already adheres to immoderate of the report's recommendations, says Sim.

"We reappraisal our information infrastructure each the clip connected an ongoing basis. Obviously, Lapu-Lapu was a beauteous large jolt."

The metropolis is conducting its ain reappraisal into the Lapu-Lapu tragedy, but Sim did not stock a timeline for its completion.

"Look, we're gonna bash our review, but I deliberation if I were to question a magic wand, I deliberation the basal origin of a batch of the challenges we spot is intelligence health."

"It would person been bully if the clip and effort that was spent connected this study were spent connected the basal cause, which is intelligence health."

At a Wednesday announcement, Terry Yung, the B.C. curate of authorities for assemblage safety, said his bureau "fully accepts the intent of the recommendations," and intends to bash its champion to instrumentality them arsenic soon arsenic imaginable earlier the extremity of the year.

"We're hoping to bash this arsenic soon arsenic we tin and for aboriginal events this summertime and successful 2025, alternatively of looking to 2026," said Yung.

"It's ne'er excessively soon to really program effectual and safer events for the nationalist to attend."