Feature: Witnesses of Louvre attack remind people of emergency preparedness tips

Paris was plunged into panic again after its landmark Louvre Museum survived an attempted attack on Friday. Despite initial tension and confusion, the evacuation under the guidance of museum security guards and police went on well organized.

The attempted attack was thwarted by a french soldier. The soldier guarding the museum shot and wounded the attacker who wielded a machete and shouted "Allahu Akbar" as he tried to enter the museum with two backpacks. But it was later found that the backpacks contained no explosives.

The attacker was seriously wounded in the incident "whose terrorism nature leaves little doubt," according to French President Francois Hollande.

Hollande hailed "the courage" and "determination" of the soldiers who prevented the attack that would have put at risk the life of 1,200 visitors.

"Around 9:50 am (0850 GMT) when I arrived below the glass pyramid, I saw many tourists running inward. There was tension in the air," said a Chinese tourist who was identified only by his surname as Liu and witnessed the attack.

Other witnesses described that visitors in the museum were calm in general although there were children crying.

According to Reuters, visitors inside the museum learned of the incident by loudspeaker announcements and mostly reacted calmly.

"There were announcements, then the security guards started running all over the place and after a short period they started gathering everybody up and getting them to one side of the building," Lance Manus, a 73-year-old New York visitor told Reuters.

After an hour, the tourists were shepherded out by heavily-armed police as authorities began to evacuate the museum, which remained closed Friday afternoon.

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS TIPS

With the growing threat of terrorist attacks, it would be wise to learn some life-saving strategies to improve the chances of survival and to ensure safety.

The French government has issued an official guideline in the form of a poster that recommends people take three principle courses of action in the event of a terror attack: flee, hide and raise the alarm.

The first action "flee" advises people under a terror attack to locate the source of danger and escape from the hazardous area. It also urged citizens to help those around them to flee as well if possible.

The second action "hide" advices people to lock the door and/or barricade it with furniture so that the terrorists can't get in.

The third action "alert" asks people to call a police emergency hotline. It also stresses the importance of obeying commands from law enforcement officials.

The guide was issued by the French authorities following the attack that occurred on Nov. 13, 2015, in which 130 people were killed in a spate of shootings and suicide bombings across the French capital.

The Louvre wrote on its website that the museum is strictly applying the security measures decided by the French authorities to ensure the safety of its visitors.

In the event of an incident, visitors must leave the danger zone, alert the security staff and follow instructions. Visitors may be confined or evacuated to a secure area while waiting for the police to arrive, the museum added. Endi