Imagine cheating death, not once, but twice; and each time death came knocking, it was at the hand of terrorists. This happened to a 36-year-old American who escaped death on Sept.11, 2001 and again on Nov. 13, 2015. This lucky American is simply known as Matthew (since his last name has yet to be disclosed).
As the first plane flew into the World Trade Center’s north tower, Matthew was walking on the street below. He ran to safety by sprinting “across half of Manhattan.” This was Matthew’s first close encounter with death by a terror attack.
His experience during 9/11, though unforgettable, was not nearly as traumatizing as what he endured during his second encounter with death at the Bataclan theater in Paris. Rather, Matthew “told France’s Le Monde newspaper” that the Paris terror attacks were “1,000 times worse.”
Matthew moved to Paris from New York this past July. He and his wife were set to attend the Eagles of Death Metal concert, but Matthew went without her. She ended up having to babysit that night.
Enjoying the concert, Matthew heard a familiar noise that he recalled from growing up in the U.S. — the sound of gun fire. He ran for the exits, but didn’t quite make it. The terrorists at the theater shot Matthew in his calf and he fell to the ground.
Matthew managed to avoid further gunfire by slowly crawling toward an exit and making his way out of the building. In order to avoid any further terrorists, Matthew played dead on the Paris street outside the Bataclan.
While Matthew laid there, Le Monde Journalist Daniel Psenny, saw him on the ground. Psenny’s “human reflex to not let someone die in front of” him took over. Psenny then dragged Matthew by his arms to Psenny’s apartment, which was located right across the street from the Bataclan.
As he entered and began closing the lobby door to his apartment building, the terrorists shot and hit Psenny in his arm.
The chaos that ensued that night in Paris left the men held up in Psenny’s apartment for around three hours until police arrived. The two were then transported to a local hospital. Both men lost so much blood during the long wait that they both feared death.
The men were within a few rooms from each other at the hospital. They were reunited after spending several days recovering. Since, they have “vowed to share a glass — or perhaps a whole bottle of wine” after they have both fully recovered.
“Some 89 people tragically lost their lives at the concert.” That is 89 deaths out of the 130 lives lost during the Paris terror attacks.
Matthew and Psenny were very lucky. They were each other’s angels. For Matthew, he could once more live to tell of how he again cheated death.
Featured image by Alexander Mueller under an Attribution 2.0 Generic License.
