A third child, a nine year old girl has died following the mass stabbing in Southport yesterday lunchtime police have announced
The other two victims, both girls, were aged 6 and 7.
Eight other children suffered stab wounds sustained during the attack, and five of them are in a critical condition
Taylor Swift has shared a message following the attack in Southport yesterday where two children were killed and 9 injured at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class:
“These were just little kids at a dance class. I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families.” adding
“The horror of yesterday’s attack in Southport is washing over me continuously and I’m just completely in shock… The loss of life and innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone who was there, the families, and first responders.”
Meanwhile one of the adult victims of the attack has been named on social media as yoga teacher Leanne Lucas
Pauline Bennett said Leanne Lucas, her niece, was caught up in the incident and tried to protect the children.
“I just can’t get my head around it,” she said. “She’s only tiny, she wouldn’t have stood a chance against a man with a knife, but she just wanted to protect those children.”
A 17-year-old boy, from the Lancashire village of Banks but born in Cardiff, has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, with police saying the motive remains unclear. He cannot be named for legal reasons.
The home secretary, Yvette Cooper, has laid flowers at the police cordon on Hart Street in Southport. She walked there alongside Southport MP Patrick Hurley, Merseyside Police chief constable Serena Kennedy, Merseyside fire and rescue service’s chief fire officer Phil Garrigan and Merseyside police and crime commissioner Emily Spurrell
