We spoke to two Edinburgh students that were in the Stade de France last friday

Edinburgh students Maximilian and Franz were watching the France-Germany football match when the bombs went off in Paris last Friday.

The two students spoke to the Tab about their horrifying experiences.

Football fans rush to leave the stadium

“We didn’t really know what was going on even though the rest of the world did and people were probably trying to reach out to us.

“Even after the third explosion, how likely is it going to be bombs? Towards the 80th minute of the match, people started to receive push notifications on their mobile phones – soon people started to realize. And now people started to worry. Though, everybody seemed to stay reasonably calm.

” People started to exit the stadium. ”

“Thousands of people started pushing back into the stadium”

“We went down to a plateau; our seats were all at the top of the stadium. From the plateau we could see the street in front of the entrances. People pushed towards the metro, when at one point people started panicking, turned around and pushed back into the stadium. It was a shocking picture. Within minutes the stadium was filled again with thousands of people.”

“There were hardly any people in the area except for armed forces and some police men in white overalls “

Maximilian said: “At one point after the match, when people exiting the stadium suddenly turned around and ran back towards the venue, for a reason that I still don’t know, but it was a frightening moment, at any rate.

He added, “The situation felt somehow apocalyptic: there were hardly any people in the area except for armed forces and some police men in white overalls examining one of the crime scenes, the mood was nervous and suspicious”

The students spent the night in a nearby hotel to avoid taking the metro.

“We stayed in the lobby, all the rooms were booked, it was the first time we had a TV so we could actually see what was going on. We stayed in front of the news for three or four hours. Everyone was trying to contact family and friends. I must have received 100 messages in an hour.”

Maximilian said: “There is no way that the open and cheerful Parisian lifestyle and joie de vivre will return any time soon.

“You obviously carry these feelings for days. Once you have processed these events for yourself, you get to the question of what implications this will have for society, the society as we know it. – there are certainly no easy answers.”

The university has made an effort to reassure students currently abroad in Paris, emailing them with helplines, advice, and safety measures, as well as helping them get in contact with other students currently abroad.

The email said: “We are aware that some of you are under great stress at the moment and our paramount concern is your welfare and safety.  You should follow carefully all guidelines issue by French authorities and British Foreign Office but I also wanted to reassure you that you will not be penalised academically for whatever you decide to do at this stage.”