InfoMigrants

On Tuesday night, a fire broke out at the Delphine Seyrig migrant camp in Paris's 19th arrondissement. This is the second fire at this location in the space of a week. An investigation is underway to try to determine the causes.

In total, the migrant advocacy association Utopia 56 has reported "around twenty fires" over the past six months at informal settlements, and considers them evidence of the extremely precarious living conditions for homeless migrants in France.

"Now they fear for their lives and their safety," Nathan Lequeux, a member of the Utopia 56 association, told InfoMigrants. The Delphine Seyrig migrant camp in Paris’s 19th arrondissement, home to around 50 single men and unaccompanied minors (mostly Afghans, Sudanese, and Eritreans), caught fire on the night of January 27. This occurred just days after a first fire at the same camp on the night of January 18.

"It’s difficult to know exactly what happened," Nathan Lequeux told InfoMigrants, regarding Tuesday (January 27) night’s fire. "According to the accounts we’ve received, some of the migrants there saw someone throw gasoline on the camp. But for now, we don’t have any images or photos of this fire." However, according to Utopia 56, the fire was "very likely" deliberately and criminally set.

Paul Alauzy, coordinator at Doctors of the World (MdM), whose team went on patrol to the site on Thursday (January 29), told InfoMigrants that "an empty tent burned down and the fire was quickly brought under control." According to Utopia 56, a jerrycan of gasoline was found near a tent. No injuries were reported, according to the two NGOs.

First fire

A few days earlier, a first fire at this informal settlement caused much more damage. Footage filmed by the migrants and shared by Utopia 56 with InfoMigrants shows flames several meters high in various parts of the camp.

According to aid organizations, at least four people were injured. Three had to be taken to the hospital. Two were released after a few days, while the third remains in critical condition, hospitalized in the burns unit of the Saint-Louis Hospital. "Those who were released from the hospital have bandages that go up to their elbows and ankles," Nathan Lequeux reported. There again, residents of the camp say they "clearly saw a man douse the tents with gasoline and traces of hydrocarbons," Utopia 56 said.

"Between 1.30 and 2.00 am, I saw several tents, including mine, catch fire. My friends, still asleep, were trying to get out as best they could. I was terrified," a 26-year-old Afghan man living in the camp told StreetPress last week. "If the arson is proven, it constitutes a racist attack and attempted murder," Utopia 56 said.

Investigation opened

An investigation has been opened for "attempted homicide", according to the mayor of the 19th arrondissement. According to the prosecutor's office, an investigation into these two fires has been opened, and the three seriously injured individuals will be interviewed. An investigation for "involuntary injuries and damage caused by dangerous means" has been entrusted to the police station of the 19th arrondissement, the prosecutor's office stated. "The findings were limited since the burned tent had reportedly already been removed before the arrival of the police," the prosecutor's office added.

File photo: A migrant camp under a bridge near the Gare de Lyon train station in Paris, January 2024 | Photo: InfoMigrants

For his part, the mayor of the 19th arrondissement, François Dagnaud --a member of the Socialist Party, told AFP that he had contacted the Paris public prosecutor on Thursday and was "reassured to see that the matter is being taken very seriously." In his letter, Dagnaud writes he believes these two fires could constitute "attempted murder."

"The people living in this camp have not been provided with shelter under the emergency winter plan, due to a lack of available places," the mayor lamented. "We cannot indefinitely allow dozens or hundreds of people to live in these completely undignified conditions," he told AFP. While, according to him, the city of Paris is "already mobilizing resources far beyond its own capabilities to try to cope."

'Now they're afraid of being burned alive in their sleep'

NGOs remain deeply concerned about the migrants still living there. While five days of shelter have been offered to the injured, the others have remained in the burned-out camp, for lack of any other solution.

"Many can no longer sleep; they suffer from insomnia due to the danger and anxiety. In addition to the cold and the noise, now they're afraid of being burned alive in their sleep," Paul Alauzy of Médecins du Monde said. "One of the men in the camp is hard of hearing. We're very worried about him because he potentially won't hear the warning cries if there's a third fire," he added.

Furthermore, after the first fire, "no toxic waste, ash, or burnt belongings were collected or cleaned up by the City of Paris services. People are therefore living in toxic residue in addition to being homeless for over a week, as they have nowhere else to go," Nathan Lequeux said. This is also what Abdul, the young Afghan man from the encampment interviewed by StreetPress last week, described: "As long as the debris isn't cleaned up, I don't even have room to move back in at Delphine Seyrig."

'Around twenty fires' in six months at encampments

In total, migrant aid associations report "around 20 fires" recorded over the past six months at informal settlements in the capital. In December 2025, a camp in Saint-Ouen (Seine-Saint-Denis, north of Paris) was reportedly the victim of arson, caused by a Molotov cocktail, according to Utopia 56. More recently, in mid-January, a fire, deemed "accidental" by the Paris City Hall, also broke out in a camp at Porte d'Aubervilliers, where a tent caught fire.

For NGOs, regardless of whether these repeated fires were started deliberately or unintentionally, they serve as a stark reminder of the extremely precarious living conditions and the dangers to which migrants living on the streets are constantly exposed.

"It doesn't take arson for a fire to break out in a camp. To keep warm or have light, the refugees are forced to light a brazier, often near their tents. They also sometimes use branches or faulty electrical connections to charge their phones, use lights, try to heat their food, and so on. But these kinds of power strips can catch fire very quickly. They're really dangerous contraptions," Nathan Lequeux explained.

"Without these, they can't survive, but they put themselves in danger every time. That's why we're requesting emergency shelter to protect them as quickly as possible. No shelter has been offered at this camp since August 2025. We don't know if they're waiting for someone to die before they act..." the association's coordinator concluded.