FORT MCMURRAY — Grief counsellors are helping students at a northern Alberta high school deal with the violent deaths of twin 17-year-old brothers just days before graduation ceremonies.
Friends say James and William Beck were stabbed Sunday night at a park in Fort McMurray and were pronounced dead of their wounds in hospital.
Word of the deaths of the Grade 11 students spread quickly on social media sites. Staff at Father Patrick Mercredi High School also phoned the victims’ friends to offer help.
“We located the closest friends of these boys and ensured they knew what happened and invited them to talk with the counsellors,” Kim Jenkins, superintendent of Fort McMurray Catholic Schools, said Tuesday.
“This is rare. This does not happen here. It is very surprising, very shocking, that two kids would lose their lives in town like that.”
RCMP were tight-lipped about the fatal stabbings.
Const. Dustin Greig said officers responded to a report of an assault at Borealis Park, a popular hang-out for young people that includes a skate park and basketball courts.
Greig would not say what happened or if police have any suspects or a motive for the deaths.
An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday.
Family and friends paid tribute to the boys on Facebook, saying the Beck brothers will always be remembered by those who love them. The website includes a picture of the boys embracing as they mug for the camera.
Their grandmother, Evelyn Lane, said the family is struggling with the loss.
“We are very sad that you both are gone but you will never be forgotten. Rest in peace as you both fly with angels now. You were so young and did not deserve this at all.”
A memorial service is to be held Thursday afternoon at St. Paul Catholic Church in Fort McMurray.