Taylor Swift has said she is “completely in shock” after a stabbing attack at a dance class celebrating the US singer’s music in Southport, England left two children dead and others injured.

The singer wrote on Instagram that “the horror of yesterday’s attack in Southport is washing over me continuously, and I’m just completely in shock.”

“The loss of life and innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone
who was there, the families, and first responders,” she added. “These were just little kids at a dance class.”

The rampage has stunned Britain and left police rapidly attempting to establish why such an unusually devastating incident took place in the nation, where gun ownership is heavily restricted but knife crime has been described as a “national crisis.”

“I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families,” Swift wrote in her Instagram post.

Merseyside Police’s Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said six of the injured children are in critical condition and the attack also left two adults in critical condition.

Kennedy added that police understand the attacker walked into the premises armed with a knife and started to attack the children.

“We believe that the adults who were injured were bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked,” she said at a news conference on Monday evening.

This is a developing story. It will be updated.