A Senegalese man who risked his life to save a family of six, including children, from a fire in a high-rise apartment in Paris is set to receive a medal for bravery.

Fousseynou Cissé made headlines across France after he balanced on a narrow ledge to rescue the family, who were trapped by flames and toxic smoke in a top-floor flat in the city’s northern district.

Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez announced on Monday that Cissé would be awarded a medal “in recognition of his courage and dedication.”

“This medal recognises republican courage that commands admiration,” Nuñez said.

The fire broke out on Saturday, forcing two families to take refuge in a top-floor apartment. Cissé initially left the building to ensure the safety of his wife and child but quickly returned after a neighbour alerted him to people trapped above.

He climbed into a neighbouring apartment, exited through a window, and stood on a narrow railing 20 metres (65 feet) above the ground to reach the victims.

Cissé carefully received the children as they were handed through a window by their mothers, passing them to safety before helping the two women escape.

“It wasn’t calculated; it was instinct. I just thought, ‘We have to help,’” he told France Info.

Cissé’s heroic actions have drawn comparisons to Mamoudou Gassama, another Malian migrant who was hailed as a hero in 2018 for rescuing a child dangling from a Paris balcony.