Vancouver mourners show support for victims of Brussels attacks

Dozens of people gathered atthe Vancouver Art Gallery Wednesday evening for avigil to showsupport for the victims of the Brussels airport and metro bombings.

The mourners, whohuddled under umbrellas on a rainy evening,draped aflag of Belgium on the gallery's stairs. Some carried placards of a teary Tintin, a beloved Belgiancartoon character.

The attacks in Brussels Tuesdayleft at least 30 people dead and injured scores of others.

FrancoiseDe Pauw, the president of the Belgian Canadian Association of British Columbia, organized the event to show support for the people in her homeland.

"This is a sad day for us," De Pauw told the group. "And I think that like Tintin, we are crying for our country and our fellow citizens who are victims of this terrible attack."

After De Pauw spoke, the group sang Belgium's national anthem, held a moment of silence, lit candles and passed around Belgium chocolates.

Many of the people at the vigil were either from Belgium, or have family there.

"It is horrible," said Stephanie Bolton, who lived there with her husband, who isBelgian."I was there not that long ago.

"It's my neighbourhood, it is as much my town as Vancouver is, and it hurts. I think any time you live somewhere you leave a piece of your heart there and I could feel it in my heart."

Anne Sweldeneshas a nephew who lives in Brussels and rides the metro.Sweldenescame to the vigil to show "solidarity with everybody, to show them that we care, that we live with them and wish them all the best and hopefully we can give them some strength to get through this difficult time."

Bart Schobben, Belgium's trade commissioner in Vancouver, said Brussels is his hometown.

"We, as Belgians and other Europeans, we will never accept this," Schobbensaid. "We have to stop this madness of intolerantpeople."

with files from Kamil Karamali