Bloodied children flee stabbing attack in England; 8 hurt, man arrested

LONDON — At least eight people, some of them children, were injured in stabbings in northwest England on Monday, emergency services said. Police said they detained a man and seized a knife.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the attack “horrendous and deeply shocking.”

Merseyside Police said officers were called at about noon to an address in Southport, a seaside town near Liverpool. It noted a “major incident” but said there was no wider threat to the public. It asked people to avoid the area.

The North West Ambulance Service said medics treated eight people with stab injuries. The injured were taken to local hospitals, including a children’s hospital.

The BBC and other media reported that the attack happened at a community center where a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga event for primary school-aged children was scheduled.

Bare Varathan, who owns a shop down the street, said he saw between seven and 10 bleeding children running from the building.

“They had been stabbed here, here, here, everywhere,” he said, indicating the neck, back and chest. “They were all aged about 10. One of them was really seriously injured.”

Colin Parry, who owns an auto repair shop near the site of the attack, said the attack was “like something from America, not like sunny Southport.”