‘We’re really feeling the love’: North Vancouver’s Lynn Valley Library re-opens after weekend stabbings

NORTH VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Lynn Valley library is once again open, the stabbing attack over the weekend that killed one woman and injured six other people.

Sandy Burgess is a manager at the library. She says staff are still recovering from the horrific attack.

“We’ve talked a lot about how our hearts are broken and for the woman who lost her life, it’s been very devastating. So we’ve had to spend a lot of time with our staff and we’ve got some professional support,” she said.

Burgess says when staff opened their doors Wednesday morning, they could feel the community rallying behind them.

“We opened our doors this morning to cheers,” she said. “There were people outside … who came specifically to cheer us when we opened our doors and we’re really feeling the love from our patrons. It’s been really nice to see people.”

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Burgess says it’s been overwhelming to see all the flowers placed at the memorial.

“Community members have chalked their love all over the concrete plaza. It’s beautiful,” she said.

Burgess wants people in the community to know that the library is a safe place to visit.

“This was an isolated, horrible incident,” she said. “I want to assure people that it’s a very safe space. We have first responders, in the form of firefighters, just a block away from us. And first responders were on the scene within minutes last Saturday. It is a very safe place for people to come and bring their families.”

She notes security at the library itself will remain the same, but foot patrols have been beefed up around the plaza.

On Saturday, a woman in her 20s was one of seven people who were stabbed in and around the library. The six other victims were hospitalized. Their stab wounds vary in severity and the victims range in age from 22 to 78 years old.

One man has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

The 28-year-old was previously known to police, but the motive for the weekend attack still isn’t clear.

With files from Tamara Slobogean