Carney orders flags at half-mast as MPs react in horror to deadly B.C. shooting

Flags on federal buildings will be flown at half-mast for seven days to honour the victims of Tuesday's deadly shooting in B.C., Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday.

A visibly emotional Carney said he has heard from leaders around the world offering condolences, including King Charles.

"Parents, grandparents, sisters, brothers in Tumbler Ridge will wake up without someone they love," he said on Parliament Hill. "A nation mourns with you, Canada stands by you.

"We will get through this, we will learn from this. But right now, it's the time to come together, as Canadians always do in these situations … to support each other, to mourn together and to grow together."

Members of Parliament will forego normal proceedings on Wednesday. Carney and other party leaders are expected to make statements in the House of Commons before adjourning in the afternoon.

MPs reacted in horror to news of the killings that left 10 people dead, including the suspect, in the tiny community of Tumbler Ridge in northeastern British Columbia on Tuesday.

RCMP said about 25 people were hurt at the school, including two with life-threatening injuries.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called on Canadians to unite in support of the families and the community.

"The fact that this took place at a secondary school, it makes it even more tragic," he said. "As a father, I can't even imagine the phone calls that parents might have received. I can't imagine the heartache and hell that they're living through at this moment."

RCMP have said police don't yet understand what motivated the shooter suspected of killing two people at a home before going to a school and committing one of Canada's deadliest mass shootings. 

The Mounties have not released the suspect's name or said what kind of weapon was involved.

Conservative MP Bob Zimmer, whose B.C. riding includes Tumbler Ridge, posted on social media Tuesday evening to offer his thoughts and prayers to the families of the victims.

"Words can’t express the tragedy that has unfolded today in Tumbler Ridge," Zimmer wrote, adding that details were still to come. Zimmer was on the way home to his riding on Wednesday morning.

Liberal MP Stephen Fuhr, whose riding is close to Tumbler Ridge, said the shooting is a "massive tragedy."

"Who do you lean on, when your entire community is affected by tragedies of this magnitude?" he said.

Fuhr added that "troubled people do unthinkable things from time to time" and the federal and B.C. governments will do everything they can to support the community.

For some in Ottawa, the news brings back difficult memories of similar tragedies.

"I'm sure many of us are watching in horror, but in understanding of what some of those families are going through right now," Nova Scotia MP Chris d'Entremont said.

In April 2020, a gunman killed 22 people, including a pregnant woman, in a series of shootings that spanned several communities across a swath of rural Nova Scotia.

D'Entremont said the federal government needs to listen to the community about the kinds of support it needs in the coming days.

"All of B.C. will have some kind of connection to that, as we did in Nova Scotia," he said.

Buckley Belanger was the provincial representative for La Loche, Sask., when four people were killed and seven injured in a school shooting there. The community marked the 10-year anniversary of the shooting on Jan. 22.

"This really re-triggered a lot of emotions for a lot of people," said Belanger, now the area's Liberal MP.

He offered his prayers for the people of Tumbler Ridge.

"The community is going to have a tough time moving forward. A lot of questions," he said.

Condolences have poured in from across Canada and beyond.

Don Davies, interim NDP leader and MP for Vancouver Kingsway, offered his "deepest condolences to the victims, the families, the friends in the community of Tumbler Ridge as they recover from the horrific attack that occurred last night in British Columbia."

Davies, who said he was briefed by B.C’s public safety minister about the tragedy, also thanked first responders for risking their lives.

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May called the deaths "incomprehensible."

"As to support and federal support," she added, "I'm sure first responders are going to need a lot of support emotionally for what they have gone through, being the first to show up to open the school doors. It's unspeakable, it's a terrible tragedy, and we mourn with those who've lost so much."

Conservative MP Michael Barrett, who was on Parliament Hill Wednesday morning to make an announcement marking "Kindness Week," said he's sending his "prayers to everyone in Tumbler Ridge."

Gov. Gen. Mary Simon said in a statement that she and her husband, Whit Fraser, are devastated by the news. 

"We extend our deepest gratitude to the officers and first responders who bravely risked their lives to protect and help their fellow Canadians, and who continue to support a community that is in crisis," Simon write.

"Tumbler Ridge will need all the support and love we can muster during this dark time."

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld