LONDON — In a harrowing incident described as "like a scene from a horror movie," bloodied children ran screaming from a dance and yoga class in Southport, northwest England, after a savage knife attack that left two children dead and wounded 11 others on Monday, police and witnesses reported.

A 17-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder following the attack in the seaside town near Liverpool. While the motive remains unclear, Merseyside Police have stated that detectives are not treating the incident as terror-related.

Among the wounded were nine children, six of whom are in critical condition. Two adults who attempted to shield the children were also critically injured, according to police.

“We believe the adults who were injured were bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked,” said Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy.

The attack occurred during a Taylor Swift-themed workshop for children aged 6 to 11, held during the first week of school vacation. The two-hour session was led by a yoga instructor and a dance instructor.

Witnesses described hearing blood-curdling screams and seeing children covered in blood emerging from the business, which hosts various workshops and classes.

“They were in the road, running from the nursery,” said Bare Varathan, a nearby shop owner. “They had been stabbed, here, here, here, everywhere,” he added, pointing to his neck, back, and chest.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the attack “horrendous and deeply shocking,” while King Charles III expressed his “condolences, prayers and deepest sympathies” for those affected by the “utterly horrific incident.”

Police were called to the scene shortly before noon. The first officers on the scene were shocked to find numerous casualties from the “ferocious attack,” most of them children with serious injuries, Kennedy said.

Colin Parry, an auto body shop owner, noted that most of the stabbing victims appeared to be young girls. “The mothers are coming here now and screaming,” Parry said. “It is like a scene from a horror movie. ... It’s like something from America, not like sunny Southport.”

The suspect, who has not been identified, lived in a village about five miles from the attack site and is originally from Cardiff, Wales.

Ryan Carney, a local resident, recounted that his mother saw emergency workers carrying children “covered in red, covered in blood,” noting visible stab wounds in the backs of the children.

“All this stuff never really happens around here,” Carney said. “You hear of it, stabbings and stuff like that in major cities, your Manchesters, your Londons. This is sunny Southport. That’s what people call it. The sun’s out. It’s a lovely place to be.”

Britain’s worst attack on children occurred in 1996 when Thomas Hamilton shot and killed 16 kindergarten pupils and their teacher in Dunblane, Scotland, leading to a ban on the private ownership of almost all handguns. While mass shootings and killings with firearms are rare in Britain, knives were used in about 40% of homicides in the year leading up to March 2023. — Agencies