Winnipeg Free Press

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LOUIS / C1 LINDSEY WASSON / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Sarah Edmilao, a member of the Filipino community, places flowers at a Vancouver memorial to the victims killed and injured at a cultural street festival. ‘Darkest day’ in Vancouver history V ANCOUVER — Charges have been laid against a man who’s accused of racing a vehicle through a crowded street at a Filipino community festival in Vancouver, killing 11 in an attack the interim police chief called the “dark- est day” in the city’s history. Vancouver Police said in a state- ment Sunday that Kai-ji Adam Lo faces eight counts of second-degree murder and further charges are anticipated. Const. Tania Visintin said some victims remained unidentified. The victims ranged in age from five to 65, and the death toll from the attack on the Lapu Lapu Day festival could grow, said Interim Vancouver police chief Steve Rai. Dozens more were injured, some of them critically, Rai said at a media briefing Sunday afternoon. “It’s just a tragedy all around for many families,” Rai said. Lo, 30, was arrested at the scene after initially being apprehended by bystanders and he remains in custody. Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said at the afternoon news conference that it appeared “mental health is the underlying issue” for the attack. “The individual in question has a significant history of mental health issues,” Sim said, noting the suspect was known to police for a multitude of mental health interactions. “I want to be clear, if anything is to come of this tragedy, it has to be change. I personally will not stop in calling on governments to make these changes now.” CHUCK CHIANG, NONO SHEN, ASHLEY JOANNOU AND BRIEANNA CHARLEBOIS DURING the Progressive Conserva- tive Party of Manitoba leadership cam- paign, Obby Khan repeatedly pledged to build a “big tent” of support. Now that Khan has won the leadership, it’s pretty clear the tent he inherited has two distinct rooms. Under new rules instituted by the party to stop leadership candidates from flooding the vote with new members, Khan won more points but received 53 fewer votes than challenger Wally Daudrich. More points but fewer votes means Khan’s victory will forever have an asterisk attached to it, a reminder that the tension between the urban and rural factions of the party are deeper and more stubborn than ever before. Think about the result for a moment. Khan is the PC party’s Winnipeg talisman, one of only two Tories who retained their seats against the NDP’s orange wave in the fall of 2023. He’s a charismatic politician with a solid, pre-politics profile as a professional football player and proven retail polit- ical skills. Daudrich, on the other hand, was a hot mess of a leadership candidate, a gregarious and energetic political neophyte who espoused just about all of the far-right policy positions that helped steer the party into an iceberg in the last election. The Churchill businessman is an- ti-abortion and opposes the provision of free birth control. He has a history of disparaging the LGBTTQ+ commu- nity. He advocated for the deportation of anyone who protests Israel’s war against Hamas. He has called public schools “an indoctrination system.” Even while facing a candidate spout- ing American-style rhetoric, Khan could not produce a convincing victory over Daudrich. OPINION Man charged after SUV slams into crowd, killing 11 at Filipino community festival New leader faces tough task to heal PC party’s deep divide DAN LETT City firefighters union warns of low staffing levels WINNIPEG’S firefighters’ union is pleading for reinforcements, warning low staffing levels and soaring over- time have triggered a five-alarm fire inside the emergency service. A new report, prepared by the United Firefighters of Winnipeg, calls on the city to hire 59 new full-time firefighters or risk burning out exist- ing staff. “Winnipeg firefighters are being asked to do more with less. We have been for decades. We’ve passed the point of it continuing to be viable,” union president Nick Kasper said in a phone interview. “The longer we wait, the more ex- pensive it’s going to be, both in finan- cial terms and in human toll.” Kasper met with Mayor Scott Gill- ingham last week to present him with the eight-page report, which compiled data on service calls, injuries and budget overruns to make a case for the new hires. The document warned of “unprece- dented strain” within the WFPS, which the union said has fewer firefighters on shift daily (167) than it did in 1981 (170) — making it the “leanest fire service in the country.” Winnipeg’s 933 firefighters respond- ed to nearly 154,000 fire and medical calls last year, making them among the busiest fire crews in Canada. Those included 200 vacant structure fires, the rate of which has increased 245 per cent since 2018 (58), according to union data. TYLER SEARLE ● ATTACK, CONTINUED ON A2 ● LEADERS OFFER CONDOLENCES AHEAD OF TODAY’S ELECTION A2 ● UNION, CONTINUED ON A4 ● LETT, CONTINUED ON A2 ● KHAN WINS LEADERSHIP OVER DAUDRICH A3 Obby Khan ;