The 4-year-old was hanging from a balcony in Paris, France when Mamoudzou Gassma sprang into action. This everyday hero scaled a four story apartment building in order to make the rescue attempt. Mamoudzou clearly believed time was of the essence; every moment counted. A video of the rescue was caught by a resident and it is a powerful example of his selflessness.
This man did not hesitate a second, risked his life and saved the kid! #truehero #spiderman #paris 👏 pic.twitter.com/u1fvid3i1j
— Fred (@FredBC77) May 27, 2018
The 22-year-old, who is a stranger to the boy, swung himself from balcony to balcony with nothing but his bare hands. He was on his way home from a soccer game when he spotted the toddler.
Mamoudou noted, “I like children, I would have hated to see him getting hurt in front of me. I ran and I looked for solutions to save him and thank God I scaled the front of the building to the balcony. He was crying because he was hurt.”
The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, thanked Mamoudou for his courageous actions. “He arrived from Mali a few months ago with the dream of making a life for himself here. His heroic act is an example for all citizens and that the city of Paris will obviously be keen to support him in his efforts to settle in France.”
The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, gave Mamoudou (who had been an undocumented immigrant) his official citizenship, in addition to a firefighter job.
“With Mr. Gassama who saved the life of a child on Saturday by climbing four floors with bare hands. I told him that in recognition of this heroic act he was going to be regularized as soon as possible, and that the Paris Fire Brigade was ready to welcome him. I also invited him to apply for naturalization.”
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