Southport stabbings: Three girls killed in shocking attack named with youngest being just SIX years old
Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, (left to right) were killed in the attack
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The three young girls killed in yesterday's stabbings in Southport have been named by police.
Merseyside Police said the trio's names and ages were Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine.
In a tribute issued through the police, King's family said: "No words can describe the devastation that has hit our family as we try to deal with the loss of our little girl Bebe."
While the family of Alice Aguiar said: "Keep smiling and dancing like you love to do, our Princess - like we said before to you, you're always our princess and no one would change that. Love from Your Hero Daddy and Mummy."
Police were seen on Southport's Hart Street todayPAA Merseyside Police statement said: "Their families, who are being supported by specialist officers, have issued photographs and have asked that their privacy is respected at this time."
Emergency services were called to Hart Street at around 12pm yesterday after the stabbings at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club, before armed police detained a 17-year-old boy, seizing a knife.
The teenage boy, born in Cardiff and confirmed by police to be from Banks in Lancashire, remains in custody following the stabbings.
The incident, for which the 17-year-old was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, is not being treated as terror-related.
Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, (left to right) were killed in the attackPA
The Home Secretary paid her respects
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Eight other children suffered stab wounds and five are in a critical condition, alongside two adults who were critically injured, police said.
A vigil for the dead and injured in the stabbings is set to be held on Tuesday evening, while local Sefton Council leader Marion Atkinson said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected at this incredibly sad time."
The Home Secretary Yvette Cooper had travelled to Southport today to pay her respects on behalf of the Government.
She left a note and flowers near the scene in Hart Street which paid tribute to the "bright young lives lost".
Cooper left a note and flowers near the scene in Hart Street
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The public have laid flowers near the scene
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More mourners were pictured showing their supports
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While Taylor Swift, whose music was the theme of a class at the dance studio where the attacks took place, said she was at a "complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families".
Fans of the pop star had raised more than £103,000 by Tuesday afternoon via their "Swifties for Southport" online fundraiser.
The Southport community has come out in force to show solidarity with the victims of the attack.
Dozens, if not hundreds, of mourners including members of the public and emergency services have laid flowers and balloons near the scene.