A father, mother, their five-year-old daughter and a Vancouver teacher-counsellor were among the聽11 people killed in a vehicle attack at a Filipino festival in the city over the weekend.
Kira Salim, a teacher and counsellor at Fraser River Middle School and New Westminster Secondary School, was among those killed on Saturday after a man drove an SUV through the Lapu-Lapu Day festival in Vancouver, officials with the New Westminster school district wrote in a letter on Monday.
“Kira was a valued member of our community whose wisdom and care for our middle and secondary school students had a powerful impact,鈥 said the letter, signed by board chair Maya Russell and superintendent Mark Davidson.
鈥淭heir work, and the great spirit they brought to it, changed lives. The loss of our friend and colleague has left us all shocked and heartbroken.鈥
Also killed in the incident were Richard Le, 47, his wife Linh Hoang, 30, and their five-year-old daughter, Katie Le, according to Richard’s brother, Toan Le.
Le says the family leaves behind their 16-year-old son, who decided at the last minute not to attend the festival so he could stay home and finish homework.
Toan’s brother, Richard, is being remembered as a dedicated father, real estate worker, and badminton and tennis coach who served his community and clients with pride, Le wrote on launched to cover funeral expenses and support the 16-year-old.
Richard’s wife, Linh, was “known for her kindness and gentle spirit,” Le said. She had plans to visit her family in Vietnam.
Katie, who was among the youngest victims in the attack, was getting ready to graduate from kindergarten, Le said, describing her as “vibrant, joyful and full of life.”
The Filipino community鈥檚 Lapu-Lapu Day street festival was underway at the time in the South
Eleven people, ranging from age five to 65, were left dead and more than two dozen were hurt in Saturday’s attack 鈥 an incident the local police Chief Steve Rai described as “the darkest day in Vancouver’s history.”聽
A total of 32 patients were rushed to several hospitals across the Lower Mainland, with 17 still in care as of Monday morning, their injuries ranging from non-life-threatening to critical.
The deadly event sent shock waves around the world and left Canada鈥檚 growing Filipino community reeling.
The festival was coming to an end shortly after 8 p.m. local time when the suspect 鈥渄rove into a large crowd鈥 on East 43rd Avenue near Fraser Street, according to police.
Bystanders and witnesses intervened to detain the driver until authorities arrived at the scene.
Vancouver resident Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 30, has been charged with . Police have said additional charges are expected and that some of the victims have not yet been identified.
Lo, who is in custody, appeared in court over the weekend and is scheduled to return in late May. He had no criminal record but was known to police.
Rai, Vancouver’s interim police chief, said the suspect had a number of prior interactions with police that were related to his mental health. While authorities have yet to determine a motive for the attack, Rai said it did not appear to be an act of terror.
Eleven people are dead and dozens more injured after a driver rammed through crowds at a
A Facebook account that appears to belong to Lo says he is from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and attended the University of British Columbia’s business school.聽
His brother, Alexander, was killed in January of last year. Lo organized an online fundraiser to cover the funeral costs after Alexander was found dead inside a Vancouver residence in the early hours of Jan. 28, 2024.聽
Police charged Dwight William Kematch, then 39, with second-degree murder.
In a series of messages posted to the GoFundMe page, Lo shared that he and his family were devastated by his brother鈥檚 death. Later, in a September update, he wrote that his mother, who deeply troubled by her son’s death and stressed from climbing bills, had attempted suicide.
Police have not identified any of the victims in Saturday’s attack, but some of their friends and families have since taken to social media to pay tribute.聽
In a memorial post shared to social media on Monday, organizers with New West Pride said their community was mourning the loss of Salim.
Kira Salim was one of 11 people killed in Saturday’s attack.
New West Pride/Facebook“They were an epic drag king, a wonderful exuberant contributor to our local community, volunteer, activist, local educator, (and) mental health worker,” the statement reads.聽
“Kira will be deeply missed.”聽
This is a developing story.
With files from Mark Ramzy, Ilyas Hussein, and The Canadian Press.
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