King Charles III paid a poignant visit on Tuesday to Southport, the English seaside town where three girls were stabbed to death during a dance class last month, and met with surviving victims, their families, community members and first responders.
King Charles arrived to cheering crowds who turned out at Southport Town Hall after Buckingham Palace announced the impending visit three hours earlier.
He walked through the sea of flowers and stuffed animals blanketing the area outside the building and waved to the onlookers on his way inside. There, he signed a book of condolence and met privately with some of the children and families directly affected by the tragedy, the palace said.
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King Charles views tributes outside Southport Town Hall on Tuesday, during his visit to meet with members of the local community following the July 29 attack at a children’s dance party. (Getty)
Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, were killed by a 17-year-old who burst into a Taylor Swift-themed yoga and dance workshop full of about two dozen children from 6 to 11 years old. Charles is scheduled to meet separately Wednesday with the families of the slain girls, People reported.
Outside town hall, the 75-year-old king greeted members of the community before moving on to the Southport Community Fire Station to meet with faith leaders and other community representatives, including emergency responders and local political leaders.
After the attack Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, who has since turned 18, was arrested and charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and possession of a “bladed article.”
The murders sparked widespread anti-immigration rioting after misinformation spread online indicated that Rudakubana was an asylum seeker, which was not the case. About 1,100 people have been arrested in the worst unrest the U.K. has seen in more than a decade.
Swift has also reached out to support the victims, bringing some of the surviving girls backstage at Wembley Stadium during her Eras Tour show. The rampage had the singer “completely in shock,” she wrote on Instagram right after the horrific attack.
With News Wire Services
