Filipino 'caring culture' hit hard by Canada truck-ramming that killed 11

A man places a lit candle at a vigil at 41st and Fraser street in Vancouver on Sunday, a day after a car drove into a crowd during the Lapu Lapu Festival, killing at least 11. The suspect in the attack has been charged with murder. | AFP-JIJI

by DANIEL TROTTA
April 29, 2025

VANCOUVER – The election eve truck-ramming that killed 11 people and injured dozens more in Vancouver sent waves of grief across Canada's Filipino community, integral to Canada in part through many members' roles as caregivers. A man drove through a crowded pedestrian zone during a Filipino cultural festival on Saturday. Officials have arrested a suspect they said had a significant history of mental health issues, and said there was no evidence of terrorism in the attack that struck just before Monday's election to choose a prime minister.

The victims ranged in age from 5 to 65, officials said. Five-year-old Katie Le was killed with both her parents — Richard Le, 47, and Linh Hoang, 30, according to a Go Fund Me page that raised $250,000 for the family. Also among the dead was Kira Salim, a teacher and counselor at a middle school and secondary school, education officials announced.

Nearly 1 million of Canada's 40 million people identify as being of Filipino ethnic origin, and more than 172,000 Filipino Canadians are in British Columbia, according to the 2021 census.