The residents of Tumbler Ridge, Canada, are mourning the tragic loss of victims from a mass shooting that occurred on February 10, marking a rare occurrence in the country.
On that Tuesday, Lance Young dropped his daughter Kylie Smith at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School like any other day, not realizing it would be their last moment together.
At approximately 1:30 pm local time, law enforcement received alerts about an active shooter situation at the school.
Officers arrived swiftly at the high school and were confronted with the heartbreaking scene of injured and deceased students and teachers.
The attacker also committed violence at her nearby home, resulting in the deaths of her mother and stepbrother, who was 11 years old.
In total, nine individuals lost their lives due to the shootings, including the perpetrator, identified as 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar.
Kylie, aged 12, was among the victims, and her grieving parents have spoken about the sudden loss of their daughter.
In an interview with CTV News, Lance expressed that his daughter was ‘a beautiful soul’ and urged that attention should remain on the victims instead of the attacker.
“If you want to put someone’s picture up on the news, put my daughter’s picture up,” he stated.
“Let’s stop giving this psychopath the recognition. These kids were lost before they even became teenagers.”
Kylie was only three months away from celebrating her 13th birthday.
Lance shared that Kylie had a passion for anime and art, and she aspired to study in Toronto in the future.
In response to the tragic events of Tuesday, he encouraged other parents: “Hold your kids tight. Tell them you love them every day, because you never know.”
Further updates to come.