VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and opposition leader Pierre Poilievre joined hands on Friday to pay tribute to victims of one of the country’s deadliest school shootings at a vigil in Tumbler Ridge, northern British Columbia.
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The 18-year-old alleged shooter, identified as Jesse Van Rootselaar, killed her 39-year-old mother, Jennifer Jacobs, and 11-year-old stepbrother, Emmett Jacobs, at their home on Tuesday before heading to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School. There, she opened fire, killing five children and an assistant teacher before taking her own life. Authorities confirmed the school victims as 12-year-olds Kylie Smith, Abel Mwansa, Zoey Benoit, and Ticaria Lampert, 13-year-old Ezekiel Schofield, and 39-year-old assistant teacher Shannda Aviugana-Durand. Two other individuals, Maya Gebala, 12, and Paige Hoekstra, 19, remain hospitalized with bullet wounds.
#School Shooting: #Canadian PM @MarkJCarney joins hands with @PierrePoilievre, Canada opposition leader as he pays tribute to school #shooting victims, 10 #killed. pic.twitter.com/G77jKpv29E
— Gopal Sengupta (@senguptacanada) February 14, 2026
At the vigil outside the town hall, hundreds of residents gathered, holding photos of their loved ones, as an Indigenous leader sang a prayer. Carney named each of the victims, including the family members of the shooter, emphasizing that all who died “deserve to be mourned.” He reassured the community, saying, “When the cameras leave and the quiet sets in — know that we will still be here.”
British Columbia Premier David Eby pledged that students would not be forced to return to the school, promising safe alternatives for their education. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police reported that the shooter did not appear to target anyone specifically but engaged indiscriminately, seizing four guns—two from the home and two from the school.
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This tragic incident marks Canada’s deadliest school shooting since 2020 in Nova Scotia. While rare due to the country’s strict gun-control laws, such attacks have prompted renewed debates on firearm regulations and school safety nationwide.