Mourners place candles and photographs during a vigil in Edmonton on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020.CODIE MCLACHLAN/The Canadian Press
Candles flickered on the front steps of the Alberta legislative building in Edmonton on Wednesday night to remember around 30 members of the local Iranian-Canadian community who were killed in an airliner crash outside Tehran.
Edmonton was hit particularly hard in the crash of Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752, which killed 138 people with links to Canada, including at least 63 Canadian citizens. The victims from the Alberta capital included faculty and staff from the University of Alberta.
Most people at Wednesday’s vigil knew someone who died. For Chenoor Shajiei, it was her doctor.
“Twenty-seven successful people from our community in one day,” she said, shaking her head, a candle cradled in her hands.
“It’s unbelievable. It’s sad. So very sad.”
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With Iranians in Edmonton still processing the loss of so many of their community, it was a small vigil on a frigid night, where the temperature hovered around -20.
Some people came alone. Some came with friends, with family, holding each other as they cried. Others, whose families are still in Iran, came to find support among the tight-knit community.
Ali Kamalipour, a University of Alberta student, knew sisters and fellow students Saba Saadat and Sara Saadat.
He came to show support for his Iranian-Canadian community and to remember his friends.
“It’s tough to wrap our heads around what’s going on, but we’re all just trying to be here for each other,” he said.
Despite the loss of his friends, Mr. Kamalipour said he will soon go back to class at the university where so many of the Edmonton victims were professors or students, “but it won’t be the same.”
Speaking at the vigil, Payman Parseyan said news of the deaths brought shock and disbelief.
“This was a flight many of us had a friend, a neighbor, a fellow community-member on and it’s devastating,” he said.
“We’re here to make sure they’re remembered forever … that we’re here for them and they were important to us and were loved by us.”
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Emma Graney