Paris Terror Attacks: On Edge, French Capital Reacts To Another Massacre

Devastated and still on edge, Paris is grappling with its second string of terrorist attacks in less than a year.

Thomas André, 32, works in IT in Paris. He lives a block away from the Petit Cambodge restaurant, where at least two customers were shot and killed Friday night. At the time of the shootings, he was eating dinner in another neighborhood but returned home shortly after hearing the news.

Scores were killed in a series of presumed coordinated attacks on bars and restaurants in the 10th and 11th arrondisements, one near the Stade de France soccer stadium where France was playing Germany, according to French media. According to Agence France-Presse, another 100 people were killed at the Bataclan, a 1,500-seat concert hall where gunmen reportedly took an unknown number of hostages and performed what one witness described as a slow-motion massacre.

“It’s close, it’s very close,” André says of the restaurant, exhaling deeply. “It’s worrisome, but we need to stand strong, not be afraid. We need to show them we’re not afraid and we’ll never be afraid. We need to stay calm, but it’s not easy, it’s not easy.”

André says the neighborhood is known as "bobo" -- a trendy area he says is "not dangerous at all." Nearby is the headquarters of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, the site of another deadly attack, in January, when Islamic extremists went on a rampage killing 11 people.

In a nationally televised speech Friday night, President Francois Hollande declared a state of emergency and closed the country's borders, and Paris city officials said amenities in the city will be closed on Saturday, including schools, museums, libraries, gyms, markets, pools. The government Friday night asked people to stay in their homes, as law enforcement officials flooded the streets. Another Parisian who lives near the sites of the shootings said planes were flying low with spotlights over the area and police cars rushed along Rue Chapon heading toward Centre Pompidou and the Les Halles shopping mall.

In a show of solidarity, the city's taxi drivers have turned off their meters and taken people home -- or to shelter -- for free, according to France 24. On Twitter, Parisians used the hashtag #porteouverte to alert those seeking safe spaces to stay.