Investigators are continuing to piece together one of Canadasa国际传媒檚 deadliest mass killings, which saw a man who at one point donned a police uniform and drove a mock-up cruiser kill at least 18 people in Nova Scotia.
The victims of the weekend rampage include an RCMP officer, a teacher, two nurses, neighbours of the assailant and two correctional officers killed in their home over 50 kilometres away.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed Monday the death count had risen to 18, not including the killer.
For family members who are grieving, the common question amid their anguish was what could have motivated the carnage.
Kelly Blair, 48, lost her beloved younger brother Greg, 45, and his wife Jamie, 40, when they were gunned down in their home in Portapique, N.S.
As with families of other victims, it seemed that normal life collapsed in an instant in the small, rural community overlooking Cobequid Bay.
For Blair, a couple she sa国际传媒渄id everything together withsa国际传媒� sa国际传媒� from driving all-terrain vehicles to camping sa国际传媒� was suddenly gone, and her sa国际传媒渂rother and best friendsa国际传媒� senselessly cut down.
sa国际传媒淲hy? Itsa国际传媒檚 just why?sa国际传媒� she said during a brief telephone interview.
sa国际传媒淚 honestly donsa国际传媒檛 really know what happened. They were both shot. Thatsa国际传媒檚 all we know, we donsa国际传媒檛 know why. We donsa国际传媒檛 know,sa国际传媒� she said.
Meanwhile, after an excruciating day unable to contact her sister, niece and brother-in-law, Tammy Oliver-McCurdie learned Sunday evening that the family, neighbours of the killer, had been found dead in their Portapique home.
Jolene Oliver, who was turning 40 this year, her husband Aaron Tuck, 45, and their 17-year-old daughter had moved to the community after Tucksa国际传媒檚 father died a few years ago.
An emotional Oliver-McCurdie said itsa国际传媒檚 a small comfort to know that the close trio died together.
sa国际传媒淣o matter how much thy went through in life, they always stayed together, and there were times that they had nothing,sa国际传媒� Oliver-McCurdie said in a phone call from Alberta.
Prime Minister 's message to kids in Nova Scotia:
sa国际传媒� Andy Fillmore, MP (@AndyFillmoreHFX)
"I know the world can seem like a mean and ugly place right now, but there's a whole lot of good in the world too. You'll see it in your neighbours and in Canadians." 馃挋
Investigators have said the shooter, a 51-year-old man, was killed after police intercepted him at a gas station in Enfield, N.S.
Neighbour Nancy Hudson said she and her husband used to socialize with the assailant and detected sa国际传媒渟ome underlying issues that I think he had with his relationship. It was a red flag sa国际传媒�. (What happened on the weekend) wasnsa国际传媒檛 a surprise to some degree, but not to this extreme.sa国际传媒�
She said was obsessed with his girlfriend. sa国际传媒淛ust being jealous about things with her. I think thatsa国际传媒檚 where things got in the way sa国际传媒�. She was a beautiful girl.sa国际传媒�
Portapique is home to about 100 residents, most of them living in modest homes along Highway 2 on the north shore of Cobequid Bay.
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But while the first victims were discovered by RCMP there, his rampage continued across a swath of northern Nova Scotia.
Jody MacBurnie, a neighbour and close friend of Alanna Jenkins and Sean McLeod, correctional officers who were killed at their home on Hunter Road, in Wentworth, N.S., described a frightening morning on Sunday for residents of a rural road in the small town.
He said he saw RCMP cruisers rushing up the road, sa国际传媒渢hen we came to find out their house was on fire.sa国际传媒�
Nova Scotia Teachers Union president Paul Wozney identified teacher Lisa McCully as one of the dead in a Facebook post. She taught at Debert Elementary School, about a 20-minute drive north of Portapique.
sa国际传媒�9300 NSTU hearts are broken along with those of her colleagues and students at Debert Elementary, as well as her family and friends who knew her not only as a passionate teacher but as a shining love in their lives,sa国际传媒� he wrote.
Judy MacBurnie, the aunt of a Portapique couple gunned down in the community, said Greg and Jamie Blair were among those killed.
The couple ran a firm that provides service, sales and installation of natural gas and propane units in the area. MacBurnie said they had two small children who are being cared for by grandparents, and Greg Blair also has two older sons from an earlier relationship.
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The Victorian Order of Nurses noted the deaths of nurses Heather Osa国际传媒橞rien and Kristen Beaton.
sa国际传媒淎ll of our frontline care providers are heroes. Yesterday, two of those heroes, Heather Osa国际传媒橞rien and Kristen Beaton, were taken from their families, and from VON. We mourn their loss, and we mourn for their families,sa国际传媒� wrote Jo-Anne Poirier, president and chief executive of the agency.
RCMP Const. Heidi Stevenson, a 23-year member of the force and mother of two, has been identified as the officer killed. A male officer suffered non-life threatening injuries.
Police say they were initially called to reports of a man with firearms in Portapique, N.S., on Saturday night.
There, officers found numerous people dead or wounded, both inside and outside a property. But Chief Insp. Chris Leather said that by the time police arrived, the shooter was gone.
An hours-long manhunt and eventual police chase ensued, with officers providing periodic updates about the suspectsa国际传媒檚 whereabouts.
Leather said the killings appeared to be, sa国际传媒渁t least in part, very random in nature.sa国际传媒�
sa国际传媒� With files from Keith Doucette and Holly McKenzie-Sutter
Michael MacDonald and Michael Tutton, The Canadian Press
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