What we know about Southport mass stabbing as two children killed
Two children have been killed and nine more injured, six critically, in a "ferocious" knife attack that also injured two adults who were trying to protect them.
Ellen Manning
Mon 29 July 2024 at 2:09 PM GMT-4
Police officers stand guard on Hart Street in Southport, northwest England, on July 29, 2024, following a knife attack. A suspected knife attack in northern England left at least eight people injured, believed to include children, emergency services said.
Police officers stand guard on Hart Street in Southport after a knife attack left two children dead and nine injured, six critically. (Getty)
Two children were killed and nine injured - including six who are in a critical condition - after a "ferocious" mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift event at a dance school in Southport.
Two adults are also in a critical condition after the stabbings on Hart Street, north of Liverpool, on Monday morning. Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said on Monday evening: “We believe that the adults who were injured were bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked.”
A 17-year-old, from Banks in Lancashire, who was born in Cardiff, has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, police confirmed, but Chief Constable Kennedy said his motivation remains unclear.
What we know
Merseyside Police said officers were called to a property on Hart Street in Southport to reports of a stabbing at around 11.50am on Monday.
One witness told the PA news agency that he called the police to an address behind The Hart Space studios, where a Taylor Swift-themed yoga class for children in school years two to six, aged between six and 11, was taking place.
Police in Southport, Merseyside, where a man has been detained and a knife has been seized after a number of people were injured in a reported stabbing. Eight patients with stab injuries have been treated at the scene and taken to hospitals including Alder Hey Children's Hospital. Picture date: Monday July 29, 2024.
At least eight patients with stab injuries were treated at the scene and taken to hospitals including Alder Hey Children's Hospital. (PA)
Armed police detained a man and seized a knife. The force later said a 17-year-old boy from Banks had been arrested in connection with the stabbings in Southport and the incident was not being treated as terror-related.
North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) treated 11 casualties at what was described as a “devastating scene”, with patients taken to hospitals including Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, which declared a major incident.
Prime minister Keir Starmer offered his condolences to the victims and their families and friends, saying “the whole country is deeply shocked”.
Home secretary Yvette Cooper said she was "deeply concerned at the very serious incident" and had spoken to the Merseyside police and crime commissioner.
At a press conference on Monday evening, Chief Constable Kennedy said: “As a mum and a nana, I can’t begin to imagine the pain and suffering that the families of the victims are going through at this moment in time. I wish to send my heartfelt condolences to them."
A Facebook post from PaintPals, which runs group painting experiences, said: 'There will be no classes at The Hart Space until further notice'.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/southport-stabbing-update-attack-police-what-we-know-131827331.html?guccounter=1