'We will emerge stronger': B.C. politician praises resilience after festival tragedy

The Canadian Press

· Posted: May 06, 2025 7:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

We indispensable "continue to wrapper our arms around" the Filipino assemblage arsenic it deals with the load of the Lapu-Lapu Day calamity that killed 11 people, British Columbia legislator Mable Elmore said connected Monday. 

Elmore received a lasting ovation connected her archetypal time backmost successful the legislature since the alleged attack April 26, erstwhile an SUV plowed done a assemblage of festivalgoers successful the Vancouver-Kensington riding she represents.

She told her colleagues that radical who are suffering person summoned courageousness and are turning sadness and despair into emotion and meaning.

"The unimaginable calamity that struck aft the Lapu-Lapu festival reminds america astir our shared humanity. It reminds america that our humanity is each excessively fragile and however beingness is but a infinitesimal that whitethorn beryllium gone the next," she said.

"But determination is hope, due to the fact that the calamity besides demonstrates that our humanity is resilient, we volition heal, we volition rise, and we volition look stronger."

WATCH | Filipino assemblage leaders sermon Lapu-Lapu Day tragedy: 

Elmore, who became B.C's archetypal MLA of Filipino practice successful 2009, said she is arrogant of the enactment and effect from the Filipino community, which has created an exigency task force.

"I privation to admit the outpouring of enactment from crossed British Columbia, Canada and astir the satellite for this tragedy. It's meant everything to enactment the families, the victims and the community, and everybody impacted."

She said the assemblage is moving with partners crossed the state to supply attraction for those successful need.

"My petition is for each of america to proceed to wrapper our arms astir the community, each the victims, everyone who's near with a dense burden, to proceed to basal together, and a reminder that successful the darkest of times, the airy of solidarity shines bright." 

WATCH | Elmore speaks connected the festival tragedy: 

Elmore was astatine the festival past period and was connected the country aft the fishy was apprehended by bystanders. Videos connected societal media amusement her lasting adjacent to the accused arsenic an aggravated assemblage shouts maltreatment astatine him.

In an interrogation pursuing her code successful the legislature, Elmore was reluctant to speech astir the specifics of that infinitesimal successful the mediate of an ongoing constabulary investigation.

"It's conscionable a devastating incidental — the nonaccomplishment of life, the injury, the heartbreak successful the community, is conscionable unimaginable," she said.

"Not lone to the radical who mislaid their lives. I've been visiting families successful the hospital, and the interaction and the trauma close crossed the full assemblage successful South Vancouver is conscionable immeasurable." 

The fishy successful the case, 30-year-old Adam Kai-Ji Lo, is facing 8 charges of second-degree murder, and constabulary person said much are expected.

He appeared by video successful Vancouver provincial tribunal connected Friday, erstwhile a justice ordered a intelligence wellness appraisal to marque definite helium was acceptable for trial.

Lo's adjacent tribunal quality has been acceptable for May 30.

A memorial to those killed and wounded grows regular adjacent the clang site, with bouquets of flowers, potted plants, wreaths, candles, stuffed animals and notes of supplication and remembrance piling on each broadside of the obstruction surrounding a adjacent secondary schoolhouse and its sports fields.

Sharon Dusangh grew up successful the area, and connected Monday, she returned to laic flowers on the obstruction of John Oliver Secondary, her erstwhile precocious school.

She said she felt "sadness, heartbreak, devastation" erstwhile she heard astir the tragedy.

"You ne'er thought thing similar that would happen, never."

She visited the memorial tract with Laura Uppal, who besides grew up successful the area.

"We don't unrecorded successful the neighbourhood anymore, but her member does, my ma does, and like, I privation to cry, due to the fact that this is our stomping ground," Uppal said.

"I didn't deliberation it would ever hap to our neighbourhood."

Dusangh, who present lives successful Chicago, said she felt "a batch of pride" seeing the outpouring of assemblage grief and enactment astatine the memorial.

Judi Fung was besides among the dependable watercourse of visitors to the tract connected Monday. She said she had been reasoning astir the alleged onslaught and its victims each week, and a acquisition of forget-me-not flowers from a person had prompted her to thrust crossed the metropolis to wage her respects successful person.

"I was conscionable going to works them, and past a mates of days after, it conscionable dawned connected me, forget-me-nots. They shouldn't beryllium forgotten," she said of those killed.

Fung had tears successful her eyes and said she felt a question of emotion erstwhile she placed the works adjacent to a raised angiosperm furniture installed to honour the victims. She had a vision, she said, of the delicate bluish flowers increasing each implicit the thoroughfare wherever the "horrendous" calamity occurred.

"Seeing the radical and the outpouring of grief and compassion, it conscionable made maine deliberation … we are present together."