Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PARIS (AP) — About 3,200 Parisians have attended free first aid training in the French capital to be better prepared for possible terror attacks.
The two-hour sessions provided Saturday by rescuers in every district of Paris aimed to teach participants how to react in emergency situations. The measure was approved by the Paris city council in December in the wake of the Nov. 13 attacks that killed 130 people.
"We must all know the five or six basic techniques that will help protecting the population if ever there are other attacks," said Dr. Patrick Pelloux, an emergency room doctor. Pelloux was also a columnist for Charlie Hebdo and was among the first to arrive at the satirical newspaper's offices after the Jan. 7 massacre there last year.
Paris plans to repeat the event at least once a year.
"I was so shocked by the attack in Paris, and again this week in Brussels, that I wanted to be able to do the right thing at the right moment, in order not to feel powerless if I ever have to face an emergency situation," 29-year-old Parisian Aurelie Bois said.
The capital's firefighters and the French Red Cross have noted a sharp increase in demand for their first aid training programs since the Paris attacks.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
