Heartbreak and Resilience: Vancouver’s Lapu Lapu Festival Turns to Tragedy
What was meant to be a vibrant celebration of Filipino pride at Vancouver’s Lapu Lapu festival ended in chaos, sirens, and screams on Saturday night.
Eleven lives were lost — the youngest just five years old — and many more were hospitalized after a man drove an SUV into the crowd, shattering what had been a joyful day of music, dance, and community.
“A lot of us are still numb. A lot of us are still angry, confused, devastated — and some of us don’t even know what to feel,” said R.J. Aquino, chairman of Filipino B.C., the organization behind the festival. Speaking at a candlelit vigil attended by hundreds across the Lower Mainland on Sunday evening, Aquino added, “Honestly, I’m kind of all of the above right now.”
The mood among those who had spent the day celebrating quickly turned to shock, sorrow, and fury.
Roger Peralta and Bjorn Villarreal, two friends who immigrated to Canada in 2016, had been enjoying the festivities when the unthinkable happened.
“Suddenly, I heard this unimaginable noise,” Bjorn recalled.
“It was a loud bang,” added Roger.
Just meters away, they witnessed bodies being struck by the oncoming SUV.
“I didn’t run away,” Bjorn said. “I actually chased after the vehicle because I thought maybe I could stop him. It was horrendous. People were just lying in the street, crying, begging for help.”
Nearly 24 hours later, Roger confessed he was still unable to sleep, haunted by the horrific images that replayed in his mind. “I find myself just stopping and crying,” he said.
Yet amidst the grief, both men spoke of an enduring strength within their community.
Roger pointed to a cherished Filipino value — Bayanihan — a spirit of unity and mutual support.
“When you meet another Filipino, even if you don’t know them, you greet them, you feel like they’re family,” he explained. “That spirit will help us heal.”
The road to recovery will be long, but the resilience of the Filipino community, bound by history and heart, is already shining through the darkness.
Grief, Anger, and Solidarity: B.C. Premier and Filipino Community Respond to Festival Tragedy
The Premier of British Columbia, David Eby, joined the chorus of voices paying tribute to Canada’s Filipino community in the wake of Saturday’s devastating attack.
“I don’t think there’s a British Columbian who hasn’t been touched in some way by the Filipino community,” Eby said solemnly. “You can’t visit a long-term care home, a hospital, a childcare centre, or a school in our province without meeting a member of that community. This is a community that gives and gives.”
Among those deeply affected is Bjorn Villarreal, a magnetic resonance imaging technologist at a local hospital — and one of the eyewitnesses to the tragedy.
“We are very caring people,” Bjorn said, his voice carrying both pride and anguish.
Yet beneath the sorrow, anger simmers.
Both Bjorn and his friend Roger Peralta expressed outrage that the SUV had been able to penetrate the crowd so easily. In their eyes, Canada had failed to protect them.
Premier Eby acknowledged that rage, standing near a police cruiser guarding the crime scene.
“I feel that rage too,” he admitted. “But I want to turn the rage that I feel into ensuring that we stand with the Filipino community.”
He added passionately, “This event does not define us — it does not define the Filipino community or the spirit of that celebration.”
As grief lingers, so too does a growing resolve: to honor the lives lost, to demand better protection, and to ensure that the joy and pride of the Lapu Lapu festival will not be overshadowed by violence.
