City and police say Vancouver festival planning followed rules before attack

VANCOUVER — Sixteen 320-kilogram barriers arrived in Vancouver this week, specially designed to block vehicles trying to enter public spaces.

The barriers were ordered in February, about two months before the Lapu Lapu Day festival attack that killed 11 people, when an SUV plowed through a crowded street.

But police say that even if the half-metre-wide barriers had arrived earlier, they would not have been deployed to prevent the tragedy.

A preliminary report by the City of Vancouver and police into the April 26 attack says public planning appears to have followed prescribed processes for an event officials considered low risk.

Interim Police Chief Steve Rai said Friday after the report was released that before the attack, there was nothing to indicate the day was going to be any different from last year’s Lapu Lapu Day festival, a celebration of Filipino culture.

“It was classified as a family-friendly event, and the risk assessment would not have warranted heavy barricades,” he said.

The American company that makes the mobile vehicle barriers, which can be chained together in groups of eight, says they can be deployed in 10 minutes to block off roads and prevent vehicles from ramming their way through.

Police approved the $410,000 purchase in February.

The city now owns two sets, a total of 16 barriers, and says that part of the ongoing look into what happened at the festival will include considering whether to buy more.

A final report is expected by Aug. 27.

The preliminary report says a site walk-through by city staff the morning of the event identified some vehicles that needed to be moved and confirmed that organizers had sawhorses blocking access at approved spots.

The event had finished less than 15 minutes before the SUV sped through the crowd on East 43rd Avenue, which was lined with food trucks.

The suspect, Adam Kai-Ji Lo, has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder, with police saying more are likely. A judge has ordered a mental-health assessment to find out if Lo is fit for trial.

Inspector Jeff Neuman with the Vancouver Police’s emergency and operational planning section told a technical briefing Friday that next year’s festival will have what police refer to as “light vehicle barriers,” usually police cars.

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said at a news conference after the release of the preliminary report that one of the most urgent challenges is addressing the growing threat of vehicles being used to cause harm.

The mayor said there had to be balance where people can feel safe and free to celebrate, and “I don’t think we want to live in a police state, per se.”

“The event was well organized. All the right steps were taken, including multiple reviews, site walks and co-ordination with first responders,” he said.

“But that doesn’t mean that those steps were enough, and that’s what this moment demands, a rethinking of how we assess risk, how we respond to emerging threats, and how we ensure people, no matter where they are in this city, feel safe gathering in public spaces.”

RJ Aquino, chair of Filipino BC, which organized the Lapu Lapu Day festival, said in a statement that prior to the festival his organization engaged with the city and police as part of a “thorough risk assessment process required by event organizers.”

“As stated in this preliminary report, Filipino BC met all requirements and followed the appropriate process related to planning an event. We look forward to learning more about what potential measures may be required for all future events in Vancouver when the final report is released,” he said.

The report says police did not recommend a dedicated deployment at the event.

It says the festival’s application rated the event’s complexity as high, with 100,000 people expected to attend, compared to the medium complexity of the smaller event last year.

The city says August’s final report will look at best practices for public events and consider the findings of a provincial inquiry slated to be released at the end of June.

The provincial inquiry, led by former Chief Justice of the B.C. Supreme Court Christopher Hinkson, has been tasked with researching best practices for safety and security at community events and making recommendations.

Vancouver’s preliminary report says that after the festival all agencies are working from a shared database of upcoming planned events and “are considering any further safety enhancements.”

Rai said Friday that, regardless of the cost, if any organizer of a community event in the city asks for police support, they will get it.

“We will support the community and should to help us get through this phase,” he said.

The report says police, city and other officials met last week to discuss additional safety measures at upcoming events, agreeing on a “key initial criteria” of event location in relation to road type.

It says there was an acknowledgment that the attack and other similar incidents elsewhere “have likely raised public concern” and that “there may be an emphasis on the public concern of a future incident occurring versus the objective probability of it occurring.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 16, 2025.

Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press