Driver plows through crowd in Vancouver, killing at least 9
April 27 (UPI) -- A driver plowed through a crowd at a street festival in the Canadian city of Vancouver late Saturday night, killing at least nine people, police said.
"As of now, we can confirm nine people have died after a man drove through a crowd at last night's Lapu Lapu Festival," the Vancouver Police Department said in a statement on social media. "Our thoughts are with all those affected by this tragic incident."
The driver, a 30-year-old man who has not been officially named, drove through the Lapu Lapu Festival around 8 p.m. on Saturday and was taken into custody.
"At this time, we are confident that this incident was not an act of terrorism," police said in an earlier statement Sunday.
The Lapu Lapu Festival is a Filipino block party that honors Lapu-Lapu, the chieftain who led native forces in the defeat of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan at the Battle of Mactan in 1521, marking the first act of Filipino resistance to colonization.
The Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver has set up a hotline for affected nationals and called the incident "horrific" while it was awaiting more information on what occurred.
Phillipine President Ferdinand "Bongbong Marcos expressed his sympathies to the families of the victims of the incident and the "thriving Filipino community in Canada," according to the Philippine Star newspaper.
"We are one with the families of the victims and the Filipino community in Vancouver during this difficult time," he said.
With terrorism ruled out, the cause of the incident remains unclear. It was not immediately known Sunday what charges the driver may face.
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