PHOTOS (18+): 9 killed, multiple injured as driver plows into Filipino community in Vancouver

A man drove a vehicle into a crowd at a Filipino heritage festival in the Canadian city of Vancouver, killing at least nine people and injuring an unknown number of others, police said Sunday.

The vehicle entered the street at 8:14 p.m. on Saturday and struck people attending the Lapu Lapu Day festival, the Vancouver Police Department said in a social media post. 

Several other people were injured, but the exact number of casualties wasn't immediately available. 

A 30-year-old Vancouver man was arrested at the scene and the department’s Major Crime Section is overseeing the investigation, police said. 

“At this time, we are confident that this incident was not an act of terrorism,” the police department posted early Sunday. Interim Vancouver Police Chief Steve Rai told a news conference that the man was arrested after initially being apprehended by bystanders. 

Video circulating on social media shows a young man in a black hoodie with his back against a chain-link fence, alongside a security guard and surrounded by bystanders screaming and swearing at him. “I’m sorry,” the man says, holding his hand to his head. Rai declined to comment on the video, but said the person in custody was a “lone male” who was “known to police in certain circumstances.” 

The festival was being held in a South Vancouver neighborhood. Video posted on social media showed victims and debris strewn across a long stretch of road, with at least seven people lying immobile on the ground. 

A black SUV with a crumpled front section could be seen in still photos from the scene. 

Vancouver Mayor Kenneth Sim said in a social media post that the city would provide more information when possible. 

“I am shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific incident at today’s Lapu Lapu Day event,” Sim said. “Our thoughts are with all those affected and with Vancouver’s Filipino community during this incredibly difficult time." 

Vancouver had more than 38,600 residents of Filipino heritage in 2021, representing 5.9% of the city’s total population, according to Statistics Canada, the agency that conducts the national census. 

Lapu Lapu Day celebrates Datu Lapu-Lapu, an Indigenous chieftain who stood up to Spanish explorers who came to the Philippines in the 16th century. 

The organizers of the Vancouver event said that he “represents the soul of native resistance, a powerful force that helped shape the Filipino identity in the face of colonization.” 

Prime Minister Mark Carney and other political leaders on the final day of the election campaign posted messages expressing shock at the violence, condolences for victims and support for the community celebrating its heritage. 

“I offer my deepest condolences to the loved ones of those killed and injured, to the Filipino Canadian community, and to everyone in Vancouver. 

We are all mourning with you,” Carney wrote.

Carney delayed his campaign events. 

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued a statement expressing sympathy with the victims and their families. 

“The Philippine Consulate General in Vancouver is working with Canadian authorities to ensure that the incident will be thoroughly investigated, and that the victims and their families are supported and consoled,” he said. 

The country's Department of Foreign Affairs said that “we remember the one million strong Filipino community in Canada and pray for their continued strength and resilience.”

WATCH: