Officers have confirmed foreign tourists are among the 40 people who have died after a fire broke out in a bar in a Swiss Alps resort.
Swiss President Guy Parmelin called the fire at Crans-Montana “one of the worst tragedies our country has ever experienced”.
President Parmelin confirmed most of the people who died were youths and that flags would be flying at half mast for five days across Switzerland.
He told a press conference: “This event took place in a place that is dedicated to life and joy…what an incredible and dreadful contrast.”
Valais Canton police commander, Frederic Gisler, told the conference: “Right now, we have around 40 people who have lost their lives and around 100 people who are injured, many of them very seriously.”
Images and videos posted on social media showed a ceiling catching fire after a “waiter held up sparkler in champagne bottle.”
Asked if bottles containing sparklers were used in the bar, Valais Canton Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud said she was not in position to confirm.
Pilloud said fire safety will be determined by the investigation and it is too early to draw conclusions.
Swiss President Guy Parmelin speaks during a press conference
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REUTERS
Ambulances and rescuers are seen on the site of a fire that ripped through a bar in the luxury Alpine ski resort town of Crans Montana
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GETTY
Flowers are laid near the site in the Swiss Alps scene
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GETTY
The bar, Le Constellation, was believed to be popular with tourists and was open for New Year’s celebrations when the blaze broke out.
Nearby, local resident Samuel Rapp, 21, was dining at a nearby Mexican restaurant when he heard of the blaze, and rushed with his girlfriend to the bar.
He said: “Police and paramedics…had already set up a protective perimeter.
“There were people screaming, and then people lying on the ground, probably dead. They had jackets over their faces.”
Flowers and candles are left near the “Le Constellation” bar,
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REUTERS
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Head of Security in the Valais canton Stephane Ganzer confirmed no suspects have been identified and no one has been arrested.
He added the fire was an “accident” that produced explosions in blasts, stressing explosions did not cause the fire.
More to follow…
