Two children were killed and nine people were injuredsix of whom are in a critical condition, in a knife attack in the town of Southport, in north-west England, near Liverpool. Police have arrested a 17-year-old boy as the perpetrator of the attacks and seized the weapon.
Parents who picked up their children from the children's event that was being held said the scene they found looked like something out of a “horror movie.” He arrested teen is from Banks, a town not far from Southport. “In this initial phase, inquiries are being made to establish the motive for this tragic incident and we would ask people not to speculate,” police said.
The North West Ambulance Service initially reported that she had been treated eight patients with stab wounds who had been transferred to three different hospitals, including the Alder Hey Children's Hospital. Later, the number of victims rose to nine.
The local hospital asked parents to only bring their children if it was urgent, because they were treating a “serious incident”, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on the social network “Horrible and deeply shocking.” “My thoughts are with all those affected. I would like to thank the police and emergency services for their swift response,” he added.
For her part, the Minister of the Interior, Yvette Cooper, called “devastating” what happened: “My heart goes out to all the families affected by this terrible incident and to the entire community,” he said on the aforementioned social network.