Today's Vancouver Sun Run to go ahead after street festival tragedy | Daily Hive

Vancouver Sun Run. (Matthew Jacques/Shutterstock)

UPDATE at 4:05 a.m.: Organizers of the Vancouver Sun Run issued a statement in reaction to the incident at the Lapu Lapu Day Block Party.

There will be an increased Vancouver Police presence to “help ensure the safety and comfort of all participants, spectators, and the community.”

“We are heartbroken by the tragic events that took place Saturday evening at the Lapu Lapu Day festival. We extend our deepest condolences to the victims, their families, the Filipino community, and all those affected,” reads the statement.

“After consultation with the Vancouver Police Department and city officials, and with their assurance that this was an isolated incident with no ongoing threat to public safety, the Vancouver Sun Run will proceed as scheduled on Sunday morning.”

Prior to the start of the race, organizers will hold a moment of silence to honour the victims.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE at 2:11 a.m.:

The annual Vancouver Sun Run is set to proceed as scheduled on Sunday morning, less than 13 hours after a mass casualty incident at the second annual Lapu Lapu Day Block Party street festival in South Vancouver.

Despite the tragic events, which occurred at approximately 8:15 p.m. Saturday, the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) says there are no major plans to increase security or change the plans for the Sun Run, which is expected to draw tens of thousands of participants and spectators to the downtown core. Sunday’s race will begin at 8:50 a.m. at the intersection of West Georgia Street and Burrard Street with the wheelchair division, followed by the main race start at 9 a.m.

A car plowed through crowds at the major street festival celebrating Filipino culture and heritage, held in the vicinity of Fraser Street south of East 41st Avenue.

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During a midnight press conference, acting VPD chief Steve Rai confirmed that a lone male suspect in his 30s was taken into custody in connection with the incident. He stated that multiple people were killed and injured, with victims taken to hospitals across the region. At 3:05 a.m., VPD provided a further update, confirming at least nine people are dead. By 9:20 a.m., the death toll had been updated to 11 individuals, with dozens more injured.

More details about the horrific incident will be released by the VPD on Sunday, but there is no longer a danger to the public.

“There’s no further danger to the public,” emphasized Rai during the midnight press conference.

When asked by media, Rai said that there are no plans to change the security strategy for the Sun Run, which is one of the largest annual events in Vancouver.

“Tomorrow’s Sun Run, as far as I know of this morning or this evening, there’s no change for tomorrow. We’ll have a full robust deployment and it will occur as planned with security,” said Rai during the press conference.

Furthermore, at 1:34 a.m. on Sunday, the VPD stated the following in a post on X: “We are confident that this incident was not an act of terrorism.”

vancouver fraser street incident april 26 2025

Emergency response for the incident on Fraser Street near East 41st Avenue in Vancouver on April 26, 2025. (Abigail Butch Andiso)

Emergency response for the incident on Fraser Street near East 41st Avenue in Vancouver on April 26, 2025. (@marcmaravillas/Twitter)

Last Wednesday, race organizers announced they are expecting upwards of 47,000 participants for the 41st annual Sun Run on Sunday.

Extensive road closures, crowd management, and public safety measures are in place for the Sun Run each year. The street race goes through roads within the downtown Vancouver peninsula and Fairview/South False Creek area.

“This was a large community event,” said Rai, when asked about the security strategy in place for the Lapu Lapu Day Block Party.

“All events that we hold in Vancouver, about 3,000 a year, are robustly assessed. It’s an entire City of Vancouver process. Fire, police, traffic control, every stakeholder is engaged in it. So we’re still working through exactly what was cordoned off and, you know, how this occurred with the vehicle.”

2025 Vancouver Sun Run route. (Vancouver Sun Run)

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