TUMBLER RIDGE — Prime Minister Mark Carney, Tory leader Pierre Poilievre and Bloc leader Yves-Francois Blanchet plan to travel to Tumbler Ridge on Friday to honour the victims of Tuesday's mass shooting. Carney's office announced Thursday morning that he intended to travel to Tumbler Ridge "soon" but did not specify when. The Western Standard has since learned that he is expected to arrive on Friday. Elected officials have been travelling to Tumbler Ridge to pay respects to and offer support for the victims and those affected by Tuesday's shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, which left nine dead and 25 injured."I am devastated by today’s horrific shootings in Tumbler Ridge, B.C. My prayers and deepest condolences are with the families and friends who have lost loved ones to these horrific acts of violence," wrote Carney in a statement on Tuesday."I join Canadians in grieving with those whose lives have been changed irreversibly today, and in gratitude for the courage and selflessness of the first responders who risked their lives to protect their fellow citizens."."We're still in the numbness mode," said Dawson Creek MLA Larry Neufeld to the Western Standard on Thursday. "We're not even to the grieving. We're in the very early parts of the grieving stage, our grieving process. Rather, there are some tough times ahead."Leaders arriving on Friday will join other elected officials who came to the town on Wednesday, including B.C. Premier David Eby and Canada's Minister of Public Safety, Gary Anandasangaree."For the parents, for the families, for the people of Tumbler Ridge, all of us here will make sure that the supports are here, knowing that they will never be adequate for what you are going through," said Eby on Wednesday."We will pray for you in whatever way we pray, and know that that is happening across Canada and around the world."Tumbler Ridge is a town of 2,500 people located in the middle of the Rocky Mountains, so there is minimal space available for an aircraft to land. It is reported that Carney and others intend to fly to Dawson Creek before driving the 1.5 hours to Tumbler Ridge.Updates to come...
