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Hundreds Attend Vigils for 2 Texans Killed in Nice, France

Hundreds of people attended candlelight vigils for a Texas father and son who were killed in the truck attack in Nice, France.

The Austin American-Statesman reports Lake Hills Church Pastor Mac Richard began a service Sunday night explaining it wasn't a memorial service, but rather, the beginning of the grieving process. He said the deaths of 51-year-old Sean Copeland and 11-year-old Brodie Copeland of Lakeway near Austin were an "indescribable, unspeakable loss."

The Copeland family was in France during a European vacation when Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel slammed a truck into a crowd Thursday during the Bastille Day celebration, killing at least 84 people.

According to a statement the pastor read, other Copeland family members still in Europe are working with the U.S. government to get back home.

Friends also gathered in Prosper to remember the Copelands, who moved from the city to Lakeway several years before.

Prayer service attendee Melissa Randle said her son was friends with Brodie.

"How do you explain that to an 11-year-old that the world is turning into something you can't explain?" she said.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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