Songstress Taylor Swift said she was left stunned and saddened after three children were killed and nearly a dozen wounded in a stabbing rampage during a dance class in England celebrating her music.
“The horror of yesterday’s attack in Southport is washing over me continuously and I’m just completely in shock,” Swift wrote in a statement shared on Instagram.
“The loss of life and innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone who was there, the families and first responders,” she continued. “These were just little kids at a dance class. I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families.”
The carnage unfolded on Monday during a Swift-themed yoga and dance workshop at the Hart Space Studio in the Merseyside town of Southport, about 10 miles north of Liverpool. More than 25 children between the ages of 6 and 11 years old were participating in the event when a knife-wielding suspect attacked around 11:50 a.m. local time, police said.
Two girls, ages 6 and 7, were confirmed dead a short time later. In the early hours of Tuesday morning, authorities announced another 9-year-old had died from her wounds, BBC News reported. A total of 11 others were injured, with five children and two adults remaining in critical condition, according to the news outlet.
“We believe that the adults who were injured were bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked,” Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy told reporters. “As a mum of two daughters, and the nana of a 5-year-old granddaughter, I cannot begin to imagine the pain and suffering the families of the victims are currently going through and I want to send them our heartfelt condolences and sympathies.”
A 17-year-old, who was not identified, was arrested in connection with the attack on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. He is from the nearby coastal village of Banks and originally from Cardiff in Wales.
A motive for the violence was unclear and police did not provide further details.
Swift is currently wrapping the European leg of her record-breaking Eras Tour. She has shows in Warsaw, Poland this weekend and Vienna, Austria the next week. She’s then the slated to return to the U.K. for another five concerts at Wembley Stadium starting Aug. 15.
