After the deadly fire in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana Investigators announced further details about the accident in a press conference. Around 40 people are said to have died, said the Swiss police chief of the canton of Valais, Frédéric Gisler. At least 115 people were injured, most of them seriously
With around a hundred injured, the hospitals in the canton of Valais were overloaded on Thursday, and some were taken to other clinics. The fire in the popular with tourists Bear Le Constellation broke out during a New Year’s Eve party for reasons that are still unclear. According to police, an “explosion of unknown cause” occurred in the bar around 1:30 a.m.
The Valais State Councilor responsible for security, Stéphane Ganzer, said at the afternoon press conference that the explosion only occurred after the fire had broken out and that the fire was not caused by explosive objects. He spoke of “chaos” and dramatic scenes at the scene of the fire. The Swiss President Guy Parmelin called the fire “one of the worst tragedies our country has seen.”
According to Gisler, it will now take several days before the bodies of the dead can be sent to the respective families. The Attorney General of Valais, Béatrice Pilloud, said that great effort was being made to identify the victims and hand them over to their families as quickly as possible. However, identification could take time because of the severe burns.
Citizens from neighboring countries among the victims
A young man who was in the bar during the accident told the Swiss newspaper 24 heuresFirecrackers on bottles started a ceiling fire that quickly spread and caused panic. Two French women told broadcaster BFMTV that birthday candles on champagne bottles were the cause of the fire. “Seconds later, the entire ceiling was on fire,” one of them said. None of the previous hypotheses for the cause of the fire have yet been confirmed.
Foreign citizens are also said to be among the victims. According to initial findings, around 15 are Italian Italian been injured. Just as many are missing, as Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Italian television. The families of the missing people had contacted a crisis unit set up in Rome and the embassy in Switzerland, he said. The French Foreign Ministry said at least two French people were injured.
Italy sent a civil defense team from the Aosta Valley and doctors to Switzerland in the early hours of the morning. A hospital in Milan that specializes in burns also made itself available to treat the injured. According to civil protection, three people will be taken to the clinic in Milan in the evening.
This article will continue to be updated.
