About 40 killed and 115 injured in Swiss Alps bar fire during New Year

Fire kills dozens during New Year’s celebration in Crans-Montana

A fire ripped through a bar New Year’s celebration in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, shortly after midnight on Thursday, leaving about 40 people dead and another 115 injured, most of them seriously, police said. Authorities did not have an exact count of the deceased immediately after the blaze, and they said the priority was identifying victims and informing their families.

Valais Canton police commander Frédéric Gisler said work was underway to identify the dead and notify relatives, adding that the community was “devastated.” He said the effort would have to take several days.

Officials say cause remains unknown; no suspect identified

Beatrice Pilloud, Valais Canton attorney general, said it was too early to determine what caused the fire, noting that experts had not yet been able to go inside the wreckage. She also rejected suggestions of sabotage, saying: “At no moment is there a question of any kind of attack.”

Pilloud later said the number of people who were in the bar was “currently totally unknown,” adding that the investigation would include the bar’s maximum capacity. When asked whether anyone had been arrested, she said: “For the time being, we don’t have any suspect,” and that an investigation had been opened “not against anyone, but to illuminate the circumstances of this dramatic fire.”

Italian citizens affected; some unaccounted for

Italy’s ambassador to Switzerland, Gian Lorenzo Cornado, told state-run RAI television that 13 of the wounded were Italian citizens and that another six Italians were unaccounted for. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani was planning to go to the site on Friday, given the significant number of Italians involved, AP reported.

RAI reported that one of the unaccounted Italians was Giovanni Tamburi. Tamburi’s mother, Carla Masielli, issued an appeal for information and asked the media to show his photo to help identify him, according to RAI. Masielli said: “We don’t know if he’s among the dead. We don’t know if he’s among the missing,” adding that hospitals had not provided news.

Survivors and witnesses described chaos and blocked exits

Axel Clavier, a 16-year-old from Paris who survived the blaze, told The Associated Press he described “total chaos” inside the bar. Clavier said one of his friends died and “two or three” were missing, and he said he had not seen the fire start but watched waitresses arrive with Champagne bottles with sparklers.

Clavier said he felt like he was suffocating and initially hid behind a table before running upstairs and trying to break a Plexiglas window with a table. He said the window fell out of its casing, allowing him to escape. He told AP that he lost his jacket, shoes, phone and bank card while fleeing, but said: “I am still alive and it’s just stuff.” He added: “I’m still in shock.”

Two women who spoke to French broadcaster BFMTV said they were inside when they saw a male bartender lifting a female bartender on his shoulders while she held a lit candle in a bottle. They said the flames spread and that the wooden ceiling collapsed. Another witness speaking to BFMTV said people smashed windows to escape and that he saw about 20 people scrambling to get out of the smoke and flames, likening what he saw to a horror movie from across the street.

Hospitals quickly hit capacity

The number of injured overwhelmed local medical facilities, Valais Canton officials said. Mathias Reynard, head of the regional government of the Valais Canton, said the intensive care unit and operating theater at the regional hospital quickly hit full capacity.

Reynard said: “This evening should have been a moment of celebration and coming together, but it turned into a nightmare.” Italy’s civil protection agency said three wounded were being transported from Sion hospital in Switzerland to Milan’s Niguarda.

Mourning planned; authorities urged caution

Switzerland’s Le Constellation bar, in the Crans-Montana resort town best known for skiing and golf, became the scene of one of the country’s worst tragedies overnight, AP reported. Authorities said Switzerland will hold five days of mourning.

In the days ahead, AP reported that authorities called on the local population to show caution to avoid any accidents that could require medical resources already overwhelmed.