Dubliner living in Paris says: ‘Security here is gone’

“I really fear for people, security here is gone. Young people gunned down.. it was as if they were my children last night.”

That's the view of Mary Byrne from Dublin who raised her three children, now grown-up, in the French capital. "The area targeted around République is where all the young people go out. It's desperate.

"But if France doesn't stand up to extremism, who will? But now they are paying the price."

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A man lights a candle during a ceremony honoring victims of the attacks in Paris, outside the Consulate of France in Geneva, Switzerland, on Saturday. Photograph: Reuters

Mary Byrne said she does feel afraid now living in Paris, but nevertheless went out to visit a friend on Saturday. “I won’t be imprisoned by four walls. We have to get on with our lives too.”

She believed the Irish community in Paris will want to come together in the aftermath of the attacks. “The Irish here will want to show their support for the French people and at Sunday Mass in the Irish College we will each bring a white flower for the victims,” she said.

“The French have a term ‘impuissant’ [powerless], but we are not powerless. There are things we can do,” she added.

Brian Overson from Bray, Co Wicklow, was leaving a comedy club at Grands Boulevards in central Paris with friends when initial reports and messages came through to their phones.

“We were in a theatre too last night, just like those people, which is scary. They were just out and they were killed,” he said.

‘She was panicking’

“We thought it was an isolated incident at first but then more and more reports came through. A friend of ours was at the cinema and she was panicking and didn’t know whether to stay there or get the metro home.

“I was getting calls until 2am. When we knew everyone was home we could relax a little.”

Having lived in Paris for over 10 years, he said it was “shocking” that one of the deadliest incidents occurred near his previous address on rue Charonne in the 11th arrondissement.

“It all feels very close to home. Today our local tea shop owner was describing how he drove his moped through the area during the attacks. He said it was like driving through a war zone, with shots ringing out all around him.”

The 31-year-old said he and his French partner, Matthieu, are now worried for the future.

"It's not so long ago that the Charlie Hebdo attacks happened, but after a few weeks you just got on with things again. But after this I will be a bit slower to go out at night in the Marais or around the centre."

Meanwhile, Donal Loughney of Patrick’s pub in the 11th arrondissement said it “could have been on any one of us” caught up in Friday night’s violence.

Handful of customers

His family’s bar is located a short distance from two of the attack sites, Rue de Charonne and Boulevard Voltaire, and just a handful of customers ventured into Patrick’s late on Saturday.

“Most of our clientele are French. They’re staying at home and will probably avoid going out for a while,” he said.

“There are so many bars and restaurants in this area and it was just ordinary people having a drink who died. What can you do against attackers with machine guns? The police can’t protect every bar in the city.”

Living in Paris since 2007, Donal Loughney said the hours since the attacks have been “surreal” and he believed there would be negative long-term consequences for the French capital.

“It’s going to be an issue for next year’s European Championships. Visitors are going to be very reluctant to come to Paris.”