CORNWALL, Ontario – A Cornwall family is breathing a huge sigh of relief after connecting with their daughter who arrived in a terrorized Paris just this morning as part of a European vacation.
Wendy Hudson said her daughter Melissa Jackson is safe in a hostel about 30 km outside downtown Paris while the City of Light, and indeed much of France, is on lockdown following a massive terror attack that has included co-ordinated efforts to kill scores of people.
“Let’s just say that I had a bit of a moment late this afternoon when I heard about the attacks,” said Hudson. “I have connected with them both through email and a phone call and they are both safe, thank God.”
Jackson and her boyfriend, an Ottawa hair salon owner, are travelling Europe as part of a vacation that also includes a stop in Germany for a worldwide stylist competition.
“Both my daughters are world travelers even though they’re both so young,” said Hudson. “They’ve both backpacked for a year in New Zealand and Australia. My other daughter, Sara Jackson, just got back from India.
“They both have the travel bug and I’m so happy that they want to see the world, even with all the negativity going on in different places.”
France closed its borders and a city-wide curfew was in effect in Paris, where more than 100 people have been killed. Within minutes, there was a mass shooting outside a restaurant, explosions outside a soccer stadium where French President Francois Hollande was in attendance, and the shootings and hostage-taking at Bataclan concert hall.
“They are planning to leave France on Monday but I’m a bit worried with the borders now being closed,” said Hudson. “Not sure what that means. I’m hoping it just means they will have to check out of the country but be able to get out.”
