Authorities said the incident happened shortly after 8:00 pm (0300 GMT Sunday) in Vancouver’s Sunset in the Fraser neighborhood as members of the Filipino community gathered to celebrate Lapu Lapu Day.

The festival commemorates a Filipino anti-colonial leader from the 16th century, which falls this year on the weekend before Canada’s election.

A 30-year-old local man was arrested at the scene, Vancouver police posted on X.

A police spokesperson told journalists at the scene that the driver was a “lone suspect” known to police.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the “horrific events.”

According to police, “several people have been killed and multiple others are injured” in the tragedy.

Footage posted online and verified by AFP shows a black SUV with a damaged hood parked on a street littered with debris, meters from first aiders tending to people lying on the ground.

Photos published by Canadian broadcaster CBC showed emergency crews at the scene as well as large crowds at the block party earlier Saturday.

Festival security guard Jen Idaba-Castaneto told local news site Vancouver Is Awesome that she saw “bodies everywhere.”

British Columbia Premier David Eby said he was “shocked & heartbroken” by the news, while city mayor Ken Sim said, “Our thoughts are with all those affected and with Vancouver’s Filipino community during this incredibly difficult time.”