A New Year’s party in an upscale Swiss ski resort turned deadly. Here’s what we know
CNN
By Martin Goillandeau, Laura Sharman, Lauren Said-Moorhouse, Helen Regan, CNN
(CNN) — New Year celebrations turned to tragedy in Switzerland on Thursday, as a fire tore through a bar packed with young people at an upscale Alpine ski resort, killing dozens and injuring more than 100 others, in what was described by the Swiss president as one of the country’s worst tragedies.
The blaze broke out in the early hours of New Year’s Day at Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, one of Switzerland’s most exclusive locales. Witnesses described chaos and terror as flames rapidly engulfed the basement bar, with people screaming and smashing windows in a desperate bid to escape.
Families of the missing faced an agonizing wait for news of their loved ones on Friday as Swiss officials said identifying those killed in the fire, which include citizens of multiple countries, could “take several days.”
Police have ruled out a terror attack, saying the tragedy is being treated as a fire.
An investigation has been launched into the cause of the blaze and whether safety standards were upheld. Two witnesses told CNN affiliate BFMTV that the inferno was caused by sparklers placed in champagne bottles, but officials say it will take time to determine what started the fire.
Here’s what we know.
What happened?
Smoke was first spotted at the venue around 1:30 a.m. local time on January 1, according to Valais Cantonal Police Commander Frédéric Gisler.
Le Constellation lies at the heart of the luxury ski resort of Crans-Montana, in the French and German-speaking canton of Valais.
Videos obtained and verified by CNN show the moments immediately after the deadly fire broke out, as it rapidly spread across the bar’s ceiling. Panicked crowds can be seen rushing up a staircase to escape, while another video shows the fire, which quickly turned into a raging inferno, engulf the bar as people desperately tumble out of windows and pile down a flight of stairs toward the street outside.
Multiple people can be seen lying motionless on the ground outside in another video, as bystanders attend to them.
Laetitia Place, 17, who was inside the bar when the fire broke out, said people were frantically pushing to get through a small door. “We all fell, we were piled on top of each other, some people were burning, and some were dead next to us,” she told Reuters.
Another eyewitness recalled hearing people shouting as the fire tore through the venue. “There were people screaming, and then people lying on the ground, probably dead. They had jackets over their faces,” local resident Samuel Rapp told Reuters.
Two witnesses said there were at least 200 people inside the establishment. Officials said the total number of revelers at the event is currently unknown, but will be part of the ongoing investigation.
According to its website, Le Constellation – which has two bars and a terrace space – has a capacity of 300 people.
Authorities responded within minutes of a fire being reported, Gisler said, and 10 helicopters and 40 ambulances were mobilized. The huge number of casualties overwhelmed the region’s medical system and so patients have been transported to hospitals across the country and abroad.
What caused the fire?
While the exact circumstances around the tragedy are unclear, investigators are looking into the possibility of a flashover once the initial fire broke out, in which everything in a room ignites near-simultaneously.
A flashover occurs when hot gases rise to the ceiling and spread across the walls, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Heat intensifies until all combustible items in the room reach their ignition point, as does the room itself.
Two witnesses told CNN affiliate BFMTV that the devastating incident happened after sparklers were placed in champagne bottles and raised in the air.
“One waitress was standing on another waiter’s shoulders, and the bottle and the flames were just a few centimeters away from the ceiling,” one eyewitness said.
“Once the ceiling was on fire, within about 10 seconds the entire nightclub was on fire,” the other reveler added.
Attorney General Béatrice Pilloud said she could not comment on reports that a sparkler was the ignition source and that it was too early to determine what exactly started the fire.
Local resident Thomas Dias told CNN the bar was popular with teenagers and young people. To those trapped inside, he said, escape would have likely been a “nightmare,” if hundreds had to funnel up the narrow staircase from the basement to the ground floor.
An apparent promotional video for the bar posted in May 2024 shows women wearing motorcycle helmets and carrying bottles of alcohol topped with sparklers as they walked through the establishment. CNN has asked Le Constellation for comment on the cause of the fire and the purported use of sparklers.
Who are the victims?
Swiss authorities are yet to officially identify any of the victims from the fire, but president of the Swiss Confederation, Guy Parmelin, said many of them were young people “full of plans, hope and dreams.”
Around 40 people were killed and a further 115 injured, police said Thursday. Authorities said it could take several days to identify all of the deceased and injured victims.
Among the injured are 15 Italian nationals, nine French citizens and one Australian, according to authorities in the respective countries.
Italy’s foreign ministry said that “as many” Italians remain missing and unaccounted for following the disaster, and the French foreign ministry said it couldn’t rule out its citizens are among the dead.
Of the 115 people injured in the fire, a “significant number” have been classified as in a “critical” condition, said Swiss State Council president Mathias Reynard.
What has the reaction been?
Swiss Confederation President Parmelin said the incident represented a “tragic loss that touches the whole country and far beyond.”
New Year’s Day was the first day of Parmelin’s one-year term as head of state; he postponed a traditional address to the nation out of respect for the victims.
French President Emmanuel Macron also offered his condolences to the bereaved, saying Switzerland has “the full solidarity of France and our fraternal support.”
Dozens of mourners attended a vigil near the bar Thursday night, where people laid flowers, lit candles and comforted each other.
“You think you’re safe here but this can happen anywhere. They were people like us,” Piermarco Pani, 18, told Reuters.
The US Embassy in the Swiss capital Bern said it is “deeply saddened by the tragic fire” and Britain’s King Charles III said he was “appalled, and greatly saddened.”
The French couple who owns Le Constellation said they are “completely in shock,” according to CNN affiliate BFMTV, citing a source close to the case.
Where is Crans-Montana?
The Crans-Montana resort is popular with foreign tourists. According to its official website, it welcomes around 3 million visitors a year, with roughly a fifth coming from abroad – most from France, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States.
It is famed for its year-round sunshine, which it owes to its position on a south-facing plateau in the Rhone Valley. The area – 1,500 meters above sea level – offers sweeping Alpine vistas stretching from the Matterhorn to Mont Blanc, one of Europe’s highest peaks.
Tourists are drawn by its understated glamor, with high-end shopping and fine dining as well as extensive ski slopes and a lively apres-ski scene.
With a small population of around 15,000, the area is said to have a close-knit community as well as being a low-key place for celebrities to go skiing, golfing and dining.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
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CNN’s James Legge, Sandi Sidhu, Ivana Kottasova, Charlotte Reck, Sophie Tanno, Camille Knight and Tori B. Powell contributed reporting.
