If it wasn’t for the howling, biting wind, you could hear a pin drop in Tumbler Ridge on Wednesday.
The air felt heavy in the northeastern B.C. community of about 2,700 people, where a mass shooting claimed nine lives and injured dozens more.
RCMP identify suspect in Tumbler Ridge shooting that left 9 dead, injured dozens | https://t.co/y0f3N6QExS #cityofpg #PrinceGeorge #northernbc #bcpoli #TumblerRidge #TumblerRidgeSecondarySchool pic.twitter.com/BHGzGYukix
— My Prince George Now (@mypgnow) February 11, 2026
Some residents, including Robin Li, said it is hard not to know someone affected by the tragedy.
“It may not be directly implicate to your family, but for sure, someone you know may lose a kid, or someone of their close family members may lose a kid, or have a kid in the hospital for the entire night,”
“We only have roughly 120, 130 kids in the high school, and 25 of them got injured, and six dead, that’s like one of four.”
Olivia Li said it’s devastating and shocking.
“It’s so quiet here, everything is quiet, I work from home and I saw kids playing on the street all the time,” she said.
“We saw that on the news, and that was like ‘is that Tumbler? Sure? Is it Tumbler?’ It’s just shocking and unbelievable, not even imaginable in such a place.”
Li said she feels sorry for the parents experiencing the tragedy firsthand.
“We can’t even do anything for them,” she added.
“Yes, we can do financial support, yes we can do this and that, but you can’t really heal those kinds of things. It’s not something that you can fix it, from the outside.”
She added she feels “helpless.”
Sierra, who didn’t give a last name, said there’s no words for what happened.
“Everybody knows everybody, so I think that makes it harder,” she said.
“We’re a very tightknit community and it’s just not something you would expect.”
She said the best word to describe the emotions in the community is “heavy.”
“Just deep, deep sadness,” she said.
“I know when I found out the amount of people that were injured, I just cried, because, you just couldn’t imagine, like it’s something that, we don’t even have any children and you just don’t want anybody to ever feel that way about having their kids gone and thinking that they went to school one day and they’re never to come home again.”
Justmit, Sierra’s husband, said he didn’t have many words.
“Nobody was looking forward to this yesterday when we woke up in the morning,” he said.
Not many people wanted to speak on yesterday’s events, but in passing conversation, you could hear the heartbreak in their voices, and see it on their faces.
Tumbler Ridge Mayor Darryl Krakowka issued the following statement Wednesday:
“Today our community grieves together.
“We are devastated by the loss of life and the profound impact this tragedy has had on families, students, staff and our entire district and region. Our community has been shaken by this tragedy. We are grieving alongside the families and individuals most directly affected. This is a painful time for all. Our deepest condolences are with the loved ones of those who have been lost. We are holding close everyone who is injured, grieving and affected.
“On behalf of the District, I want to thank the brave teachers, administrators, students and first responders who acted selflessly, putting their own safety aside to help those in need and to prevent further tragedy.
“We recognize that there are many questions to be answered as we all try to make sense of this incomprehensible and devastating event. We ask residents to rely only on confirmed information provided through official RCMP updates as the investigation continues.
“Our community is strong; we are family; we need to help each other. We encourage residents to check in on one another and hold your loved ones close as we navigate this unimaginable loss together. For those who require support, counselling or mental health services, those are available at the Tumbler Ridge Health Centre.
“We understand the need for our community to come together. While local community members are organizing gatherings, plans are also underway for a community vigil in the coming days. Information will be provided here once those plans are in place.
“We understand the interest and appreciate offers for support. At this time, we ask for respect and privacy for all who have been impacted by these horrible events.”
Additionally, the province has organized an online book of condolences, which will remain open until Feb. 20.
