Ten people were killed and more than a dozen others were injured in stabbings in two remote Canadian communities Sunday, police said, as they launched a manhunt across several provinces for two suspects.
“We have located 10 deceased individuals in 13 locations in the community of James Smith Cree Nation and Weldon, Saskatchewan,” Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore told a news conference.
“Several additional victims have been injured, 15 of which at this point have been transported to various hospitals,” she said.
“We are actively looking for the two suspects… and investigating the many crime scenes.”
A dangerous person alert had been issued in the morning in Saskatchewan, as police responded to “multiple stabbings (in) multiple locations” in the Indigenous community and nearby town of Weldon.
Blackmore said police received a call at 5:40 am (11:40 GMT) about a stabbing at the James Smith First Nation, followed quickly by more calls reporting further stabbings.
She said authorities believe “some of the victims were targeted by the suspects and others were attacked randomly.”
After reported sightings of the suspects in Regina, the provincial capital more than 300 kilometers (185 miles) to the south, the alert and search expanded to include neighboring Manitoba and Alberta provinces — a vast region almost half the size of Europe.
The Saskatchewan Health Authority told AFP in a statement it had activated emergency protocols to deal with “a high number of critical patients.”
“We can confirm that multiple people are being triaged and cared for at multiple sites and that a call for additional staff to help respond to this situation has occurred,” it added.