Swiss Alps bar fire: What we know & what we don’t about blaze that killed 40

The fire broke out on 1 January at a bar called Le Constellation in the luxury Alpine ski resort town of Crans-Montana.

Emergency personnel work at the site of an explosion and fire at the "Le Constellation" bar | Reuters

New Delhi: At least 40 people were killed and around 100 injured in a blast and the subsequent fire at a bar in the luxury Alpine ski resort town of Crans-Montana in Switzerland in the early hours of Thursday, the Italian foreign ministry said.

The fire broke out on 1 January, 1:30 am local time at a bar called Le Constellation, according to police spokesperson Gaetan Lathion. More than 100 people were inside the building at the time of the blast.

A large contingent of police, firefighters, and rescue personnel immediately responded to the scene to assist the fire victims.

While Swiss authorities only confirmed ‘several tens’ of deaths, the Italian foreign ministry, reporting on the information provided by Valais Cantonal Police, put the number of casualties at 40.

According to authorities, the victims are yet to be identified due to their severe burns.

The Swiss police do not have reason to believe the fire was caused by arson. Officials said the exact cause of the blaze remains unknown, Reuters reported.

Valais hospital’s intensive care unit has been filled to capacity, with patients being transferred to other facilities, Al Jazeera reported regional councillor Mathias Renard saying. The area around the resort has been sealed off and a no-fly zone imposed over Crans-Montana, Swiss police said.

Officials said several hundred people of multiple nationalities were affected and that identifying the dead and injured would take time. The UK embassy in Switzerland has opened a 24-hour assistance line for British nationals in the country.

A candle caused the fire?

As reported by Associated Press, two women told French broadcaster BFMTV that they were inside the venue when a barman lifted a barmaid onto his shoulders. She was holding a lit candle in a bottle, which caused the wooden ceiling to catch fire, they said.

The fire spread rapidly and the ceiling collapsed.

Le Constellation was located near the upscale ski resort frequented by people of multiple nationalities. The resort is in Crans-Montana, situated in the Swiss Alps, about 40 kilometres north of the Matterhorn.

(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)