Parisians use hashtag #porteouverte to offer their homes as shelter during attacks

The #PorteOuverte hashtag has seen people tweeting their location, or a place where they will be welcome to spend the night and get off the streets as a state of emergency was declared.

Parisians responded to the carnage and multiple terrorist attacks in their city with solidarity, rallying together on social media and opening their doors to strangers seeking refuge from violence.

By the time police came in, the attackers had already detonated their explosives, also killing many around them. “He’s not getting back to me: help me”, it read.

Police said around 100 people were killed at the Bataclan music venue in eastern Paris alone, where one witness said an attacker yelled “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest).

However, many people are using the hashtag to talk about it, which pushed down the real helpful tweets.

“If people are stranded, I can accommodate two of three people on Rue des Martyrs”, offered one user, while WroteGabDeLioncourt said: “Our sofa is always available for two/three people in Maraichers”. “Parisians will let you in their home”.

Are you there or do you know anyone there?

The website’s Safety Check feature provided instant updates on a user’s friends so long as they had posted that they were in Paris and were alive and well.

As we watched the events in Paris unfold on the news last night, we were shocked and horrified, and immediately wondering what we could do.