Paris attacks: Essex woman was near the centre of the chaos

The deadly attacks in Paris hit close to home for a young woman from Essex County now living in France.

Jessaline Fynbo, who is originally from Cottam and lived in LaSalle before heading to France, began studying at the American University of Paris in September.

She lives a 20-minute walk away from one of the attack sites.

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She says her normally bustling street became empty after Friday night's attacks.

"For the last three months I have complained about how noisy it has been around my apartment because of the surrounding restaurants, cafés, and bars. Last night and today my street was painstakingly quiet - only sounds of silence, sirens and police marching in the street. I will never complain again," Fynbo posted on her Facebook page Saturday, the day after the attacks.

Although she and her friends are fine, the situation has rattled her.

"I didn't fall asleep [Friday] night until about 5 a.m. I couldn't really close my eyes. I didn't know if anything else was going to happen. I just wished I was with my family," she said while speaking to CBC Windsor from France. "Luckily, I have a roommate and we were here to support each other, but nonetheless, it was still very nerve-wracking.

"Everyone's a little bit on edge, and it's still a lot quieter than it is normally, but I'm sure after a few more days pass, it'll go back to normal."

Fynbo says she now feels safe, though the sounds of emergency sirens make her tense.

Sunday, she made her way to some of the areas where suicide bombers and gunmen attacked.

"Today was an incredibly emotional day, but seeing so many people with various beliefs, religions, ethnicities, and so on come together, whether they had lost someone this weekend in Paris or elsewhere in the world, was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen," she said in a Facebook post.