Flowers still being added to Lynn Valley memorial as community tries to reclaim site of stabbings
1 person was killed and 6 others injured in string of attacks at North Vancouver plaza 1 month ago
A month after seven people were stabbed in and around the Lynn Valley public library in North Vancouver, B.C., fresh flowers are still being added to a memorial site honouring the victims.
"I don't think you ever forget," said Paula Webber, a nearby resident and frequent visitor of the plaza.
"It is at the back of your mind."
Another nearby resident, Arsham Farasat, told CBC News there has been a communal effort to reclaim the space in recent weeks and bring back some of the positive atmosphere that made it so loved by the community, while still honouring those affected.
"Instead of submitting to the anger and the aggression of the attack and the really dark side of that, to really bring the love and joy back into this place," he said.
Farasat lives one street away and was headed to the plaza that Saturday afternoon when a friend's text message about the attack stopped him in his tracks.
"It does cross my mind every now and again — if it was just an hour earlier, then I could have been here."
The District of North Vancouver has set up an online memorial named Lynn Valley Remembers so people across the country can continue to show their support.
Yannick Bandaogo, 28, was arrested at the scene and is accused of killing a woman in her late 20s in the attack. He has been charged with second-degree murder.
Six other people, ranging in age from 22 to 78, received various injuries.
Investigators have said there is no evidence linking Bandaogo, who is from Quebec, to any of the victims and that he seems to have had little connection to North Vancouver or the Lynn Valley area.
WATCH | Excerpt from social media video shows what appears to be arrest of suspect:
