A man who lost his wife in the Lapu Lapu festival tragedy spoke about her love and legacy at a vigil for the victims on Monday night.
Jen Darbellay was struck and killed by an SUV at the Filipino festival on Saturday night.
Noel Johansen was also injured in the incident but that was secondary to him when he spoke in front of a crowd gathered near the site of the deadly incident at East 41st Avenue and Fraser Street.
“What you see here is an injury that means nothing to me because what’s inside my heart is broken,” Johansen said, holding back tears.
“Because my wife passed away behind me at the incident.”
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He said he felt his wife in every hug he received from those at the vigil.
“She never celebrated herself in her life,” Johansen said of his wife. “She never thought of herself, she thought of herself as small in terms of the reach.
“And I can tell you she was larger than life for any of you who know her. So don’t be small in life, be big, reach out and reach out as a human being with everything you have and please remember us who went through this.”
A GoFundMe has now been set up for Darbellay’s family. She leaves behind two children, ages 15 and seven.
Eleven people were killed when an SUV drove into a crowd of people at the festival, which was being held on the grounds of a school. The festival was being held to celebrate Filipino heritage and culture.
The victims of the tragedy range in age from five to 65 years old. Here is what we know so far.
On Tuesday afternoon, Vancouver police Sgt. Steve Addison said the number of people recovering in hospital remains the same. He said seven people remain in critical condition, ranging in age from 29 to 66. Five of them are men and two are women.
In addition, three people remain in serious condition, all male, ranging from 22 months to 60 years old.
“We are working to confirm the nationalities of all victims,” Addison said.
He added that investigators have identified more than 200 witnesses. He said they have received 43 tips and there have been 51 uploads to the evidence portal on the Vancouver police website.
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