Details about the horrific terrorist attacks in Paris continue to unfold today, including the story of a pregnant American who was turned away from the U.S. Embassy during the chaos.
Will and Rebecca Bogle, from Macon, Georgia, were visiting Paris to celebrate Will’s birthday when the attacks occurred, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The couple was eating at a restaurant when they heard about the bombings – only 10 minutes from their location, according to the report. Rebecca, who is six-months pregnant, began to panic, her husband said.
Because they could not find a taxi back to the hotel, the couple decided to walk two miles to the U.S. Embassy to seek shelter there, according to the report.
The couple, who are originally from New York, also witnessed the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Will told WSB TV in Atlanta, “I remember the energy in the city when that happened, and this was very reminiscent of that.”
Will said he tried to keep his wife calm during their walk as they watched police and ambulances fly past. But when they arrived safely at the U.S. Embassy, they were denied entry.
The Atlanta newspaper continues:
The American who met him at the gate said he was sorry, but Bogle and his wife couldn’t come in to shelter there. He recommended walking to a hotel.
“I was pretty disheartened that we weren’t allowed to get in, and my wife is six months pregnant, and we had to walk so long,” Bogle said. He also thought, “If you’re going to close, be closed when it is sunny outside and nobody needs you.”
The State Department did not respond to calls or emails on Saturday asking why the American embassy was closed to Americans.
The couple used the Paris metro to return to their hotel, and immediately packed and booked a flight home. The couple arrived in Atlanta on Saturday afternoon, according to the report.
Four American college students studying abroad said they also were denied entry to the U.S. Embassy during the attacks.
Bethany Salgado told The Blaze that an embassy worker told them that the whole block was on lock-down because the French president, prime minister and other top government officials were nearby.
She continued, “He also told us that embassies are typically only offered as places of shelter for citizens during wartimes, and since the terrorist attacks were a single, isolated event, the embassy was not available to let in citizens.”
Islamic terrorists with ISIS are blamed for the Paris attacks on Friday that tragically killed more than 120 people and injured almost 400 others.
