Donations are pouring in to support those affected by the deadly vehicle ramming that killed 11 people at a Filipino festival in Vancouver on Saturday, raising more than $2 million for the victims.聽
There are 13 verified fundraiser pages that have been compiled into a , along with another fundraiser dedicated to for the Filipino community 鈥 “so they can focus on healing and supporting their loved ones.”
The total donations on each page ranged from nearly $18,000 to more than $542,000 as of Thursday afternoon.聽
The donations are “a result of incredible generosity we鈥檙e seeing for those affected by the festival tragedy in Vancouver,” GoFundMe Canada said in an email.聽
The 11 victims, ages five to 65, were killed and dozens more were hurt after police say a 30-year-old Vancouver man drove a vehicle into crowds at the Lapu-Lapu Day festival on Saturday night 鈥 in what officials described as “the darkest day in Vancouver history.”
The Filipino community鈥檚 Lapu-Lapu Day street festival was underway at the time in the South Vancouver neighbourhood.
The Filipino community鈥檚 Lapu-Lapu Day street festival was underway at the time in the South Vancouver neighbourhood.
Among the dead are聽Richard Le, his wife Linh Hoang and their daughter Katie,聽who are survived by their son Andy. Richard’s brother, Toan Le, has聽聽鈥斅爁ar surpassing his goal of $30,000.聽
In , Andy said he’ll be giving $266,000, nearly half of his campaign, to the other families affected by the attack.
“I truly appreciate each and every one of you,” he said, thanking donors for their support with his fundraiser.
“I know that many other families are hurting, too.”
Of the victims, there were seven women, two men, one non-binary and one child, police said in an update Wednesday.聽
Over the weekend, 32 surviving victims were taken to hospital, and Vancouver police said Thursday that 13 remain hospitalized, four in critical condition and two seriously injured.聽As of Tuesday, a 22-month child was listed in serious condition.
Police also said at a news conference on Thursday that they will deploy 400 officers and additional security measures for Sunday’s Vancouver marathon, which organizers expect will attract more than 25,000 guests.
Kai-Ji Adam Lo has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder, and is anticipated to face further charges. Vancouver police said the deadly incident was a ”completely indiscriminate act of violence,” and that they’ve had a 鈥渟ignificant history鈥 of mental-health-related interactions with the suspect.
Vancouver Coastal Health says its mental health team was treating the suspect in Saturday’s ramming attack that killed 11 and hurt dozens more.聽
Vancouver Coastal Health says its mental health team was treating the suspect in Saturday’s ramming attack that killed 11 and hurt dozens more.聽
Officers added Lo interacted with a neighbouring police jurisdiction the day before the attack, but it 鈥渨as not criminal in nature鈥 and 鈥渄id not rise to the level鈥 where mental health intervention was required.
Prior to the attack, mental health workers with Vancouver Coastal Health had been treating the accused 鈥 who was put on “extended leave” from the regional health authority鈥檚 mental health team in accordance with the Mental Heath Act, spokesperson Jeremy Deutsch said in a statement.
An extended leave generally means a patient can live in the community while following a treatment plan 鈥 such as checking in with a mental health team and taking prescribed medication.
鈥淚n this situation,鈥 Deutsch said, 鈥渢he care team followed established guidelines for a client on extended leave, and there was no indication this person was not following their treatment plan or presented a public safety risk.鈥
Eleven people, ranging from age five to 65, were killed and more than 30 people were hurt in
As part of their investigation into the deadly聽incident, Vancouver police are conducting a video canvas spanning 25 blocks and are interviewing 200 witnesses.
“The horrific nature of this crime against聽the Le family and other victims serves as a painful reminder that, as a society, we must do better,” Toan wrote on the fundraiser page.聽
“We hope you cherish your loved ones every single day, as Andy and many others no longer have that chance.”聽
With files from Calvi Leon, Jennifer Pagliaro, Abby O鈥橞rien, Mark Colley and The Canadian Press
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