Interior minister Gérald Darmanin said that the 24-year-old man, a Caporal-Chef with the Paris fire brigade, died on Sunday night while trying to extinguish blazing cars in an underground car park in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis.

A spokesman for the Paris fire service told French media that around 200 firefighters were involved battling a blaze in an underground car park beneath an apartment block in Saint-Denis, but could not say whether the blaze was linked to the riots or not, adding that “every year there are dozens of fires of this type”.

French media reported that the young firefighter died of a heart attack.  

Cette nuit, en luttant contre un feu de plusieurs véhicules dans un parking souterrain à Saint-Denis (93), un jeune Caporal-Chef de la Brigade de sapeurs-pompiers de Paris de 24 ans est décédé malgré la prise en charge très rapide par ses équipiers.
Toutes mes condoléances…

— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) July 3, 2023

Firefighters have been on the front line during the repeated nights of rioting, battling hundreds of fires from buildings and cars set blaze to smaller fires in bins, street furniture and barricades.

In total 157 people were arrested across France on Sunday night in what had generally been a quieter night than earlier in the week. Rioting has gripped France since Tuesday, following the death of a 17-year-old boy at the hands of police. 

On Monday, French mayors have called on people to gather at their local mairie at 12 noon to express their opposition to the riots and looting.