On Monday, three children were killed after a mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift themed children’s dance club in Southport on Monday.
Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar were stabbed to death at the event at Hart Space Studios.
Eight other children suffered stab wounds and five are in a critical condition, alongside two adults who were also seriously injured, Merseyside police said.
A 17-year-old boy from Banks, Lancashire has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.
Dozens of police officers were later injured in riots after the far-right English Defence League hijacked a vigil for the three young girls.
Among those to pay tribute to the victims was Fleetwood who was born and raised in Southport and is competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The 33-year-old was emotional as he discussed the news at a press conference ahead of the start of the golf on Thursday and while he understandably did not want to connect sport to the tragic events, said it was important that everyone ‘help the ones affected and get together to make the town a better place.’
‘I was in the car with [his putting coach] Phil Kenyon, who lives in Southport, and he has a parents’ group chat for school or something and there was stuff going on on that,’ Fleetwood said, recalling how he found out about the stabbing.
‘We were a little bit confused, we didn’t really realise what was going. When it’s happening, you don’t process it for a while and then more news starts coming out about it. It’s terrible, it’s obviously tragic for the town and everybody but for the people involved, it’s just horrific.
‘I don’t know what to say. Stuff like this happens way more often than we would all like. You don’t expect it to happen in a little town like Southport.
‘First thoughts, of course, are always with the families where they’ve tragically lost someone or they’re going to have to deal with it for the rest of their lives and it’s just not fair.
‘My dad’s still there and relatives and friends – nobody that was affected by it but I still have very close ties with the town. I know where it happened and everything.
‘It’s my hometown and when one of you gets hurt, you feel like all of you do. That’s just what home is. Everybody is feeling it, for sure, but nobody as much as the families that are involved and that’s what comes first.”
‘I’m pretty sure that [winning gold] would make no difference to anybody but it would be a nice happy thought, something back for the town if you like.
Timeline of Southport stabbing
Monday
11.30am: Footage shows a person dressed in a green hoodie and face covering pacing outside a home later raided by police.
11.47am: A man entered a children’s summer club holding a Taylor Swift dance event on Hart Street, Southport, and launched the stabbing attack.
1.30pm: Merseyside Police declare a ‘critical incident’.
2pm: North West Ambulance Service confirm victims have been taken to hospital, with Alder Hay declaring a ‘major incident’.
5.30pm: Merseyside Police confirm a 17-year-old boy from Banks has been arrested.
7pm: Two children confirmed to have died, with six other people in a critical condition.
Tuesday
12pm: Third child confirmed to have died in the stabbings.
3.20pm: All three victims names as Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar.
6pm: A vigil is held for the stabbing victims, with the Home Secretary Yvetter Cooper
8.30pm: Reports of disorder outside Southport Mosque emerge, with police offficers suffering minor injuries.
8.45pm: Footage shows a police van on fire, with protestors beginning to throw bricks and flares at officers. Violence lasts until around 10pm.
7am: Community condemns the violence from people ‘outside of Southport’ and begin clean up operation.
‘Gold medal or not, we’ll all just work to help the ones affected and all get together in restoring the town and hopefully making it into a better place.
‘Of course, it puts everything into perspective. We all follow our dreams, whatever it is, and that’s obviously a huge part of life but for those kids that won’t have the chance and those families that have got to deal with it, it massively puts things into perspective. It’s rubbish.’
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