Apex native feels safe in Paris following attacks

John Yager was out in Paris Friday night attending an event at a bar with friends. He wasn't close enough to hear the chaos, but news spread fast about gunfire in the city.

“Everything just started shutting down,” Yager said. “The shops. Everyone needs to go home.”

The 24-year-old Apex native didn’t go home, he spent the night at a friend’s house. By Saturday night, Yager was back at his apartment at Rue Saint-Martin, only about a mile from the Bataclan concert hall where more than 80 people were killed.

“It’s very somber, quiet,” he said. “You can tell something big happened, especially the area that I live in. It’s usually very lively; people going out and about constantly.”

Tourist sites and museums are all closed following the attacks. The school he attends—the Paris Institute of Political Studies—is also closed, as are all the schools in the Paris region.

However, Yager said he doesn’t plan to stay holed up in his apartment.

“There’s definitely a high military presence here,” he said. “I mean, there’s enough security that we do feel safe.”

Yagers said when he does go out, he’s extremely vigilant.

“This is exactly—unfortunately—the type of thing we see and read about every day, only in Paris,” he said.

The Apex High School graduate has been in Paris since August and plans to stay another year. He’s working on his master in international affairs and Middle East studies.