The Man Who Climbed Four Floors to Save a Dangling Child

On May 26, 2018, Mamoudou Gassama was walking through Paris when he heard people shouting. He looked up and saw a four-year-old boy hanging outside a fourth-floor balcony.

A neighbor on the adjoining balcony had grabbed the child, but the wall between the apartments prevented him from lifting the boy to safety. Gassama, a 23-year-old man from Mali, ran toward the building and started climbing.

Four Floors Without a Ladder

People on the street watched as Gassama pulled himself onto the first balcony. He grabbed the railing above him, lifted himself up and kept going, one floor after another.

He had no rope, harness or safety equipment. Every move meant reaching for another railing and pulling himself higher, with the street far below.

The neighbor held on as Gassama climbed. He couldn’t get the boy over the dividing wall himself, but his grip was keeping the child from falling.

Within moments, Gassama reached the fourth floor. He swung himself over the railing, grabbed the boy and brought him safely onto the balcony.

Paris firefighters arrived shortly afterward, but the rescue was already over. Someone in the crowd had recorded the climb, and the footage soon began spreading across France.

The Spider-Man of Paris

The video showed a young man in jeans scaling the outside of an apartment building with remarkable speed. French news outlets shared it widely, and people began calling him the Spider-Man of Paris.

As reporters learned who he was, another part of the story emerged. Gassama had come to France from Mali and was living in the Paris area without regular immigration status. His future in the country had been uncertain.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo contacted him to praise the rescue. Two days after the climb, he was invited to the Élysée Palace to meet President Emmanuel Macron.

An Invitation From the President

On May 28, Macron asked Gassama to describe what had happened. Gassama explained that he’d seen the child in danger and started climbing without stopping to think about what could happen to him. During the meeting, Macron announced that the government would regularize Gassama’s immigration status and put him on a path toward French citizenship.

The president also discussed opportunities in emergency services, where Gassama could learn to help people in a more formal role.

A Place With the Fire Brigade

Gassama soon signed a ten-month civic-service contract with the Paris Fire Brigade. The placement offered training and practical experience alongside people who responded to emergencies for a living.

General Jean-Claude Gallet, the brigade’s commander, welcomed him publicly and said he was proud to have him join the organization. It wasn’t an instant appointment as a professional firefighter. It was a chance to learn the work, receive training and begin building a future in a field he had suddenly become famous for.

Paris Gives Him Its Highest Honor

On June 4, Gassama stood at Paris City Hall as Mayor Hidalgo presented him with the Grand Vermeil Medal, the city’s highest honor. The city also recognized the neighbor who had helped in the rescue, rather than giving all the credit to the man whose climb appeared in the viral video.

Gassama thanked the mayor and the city. For all the attention, he remained modest about the rescue.

By November 2018, Macron’s promise had been fulfilled. Gassama officially became a French citizen at a ceremony in Seine-Saint-Denis, less than six months after the rescue that had changed his life.

Later, he said his legs hadn’t started shaking until he was safely inside the apartment.

Once the danger had passed, he had to sit down.