Swiss police have identified the bodies of four Swiss victims, including two minors, from the New Year’s bar fire that tore through Le Constellation in the Alpine resort of Crans-Montana, as the national death toll rose to 40 and families braced for further grim confirmations.
Valais canton police said investigators identified a 21-year-old woman, an 18-year-old man, a 16-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy. Their remains have been returned to their families while authorities continue the painstaking process of confirming other victims of the Crans-Montana bar fire.
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The blaze struck as the venue was packed with New Year’s revelers. At least 119 people were injured, most of them seriously, according to authorities. Police said many of those hurt were foreign nationals, underscoring the ski resort’s international draw, and non-Swiss citizens are widely expected to be among the dead.
Flowers, candles and handwritten messages have piled up at a makeshift memorial near the entrance to Le Constellation, where mourners have gathered in silence. Families of the overwhelmingly young partygoers are enduring an agonizing wait as identification work continues and appeals for the missing circulate online.
Among those fearing the worst is Laetitia Brodard, who said the last text she received from her son, Arthur, read: “Mother, Happy New Year, I love you.” “It’s been 40 hours. Forty hours since our children have disappeared. So we should know by now,” she told reporters near the memorial.
The exact number of people inside Le Constellation when the fire ignited remains unclear. The resort’s website lists the bar’s capacity at 300 people, plus 40 on its terrace.
Two French managers of the venue have been taken in for questioning. One of them, Jacques Moretti, told Swiss media that all safety standards were followed. Chief Prosecutor Beatrice Pilloud said compliance with standards is a focus of the investigation.
Pilloud said the leading hypothesis is that “sparklers or Bengal candles attached to champagne bottles and lifted too close to the ceiling” ignited the blaze. Video from inside the club showed a low wooden ceiling clad in soundproofing foam catching fire and flames racing overhead while music continued and some revelers kept dancing, apparently unaware of the danger. When the crowd realized, panic set in.
Eyewitnesses described chaos as people smashed windows to escape. Others, burned and disoriented, staggered into the street. Nathan, who had been inside earlier, saw injured people streaming out of the building.
Of the injured, police chief Gisler said 71 are Swiss, 14 are French, 11 are Italian and four are from Serbia. Others are from Bosnia, Belgium, Poland, Portugal and Luxembourg. Authorities warned it could take days to identify all those who perished.
The Crans-Montana fire has rattled Switzerland and set off urgent questions about nightclub safety, flammable soundproofing materials and the use of pyrotechnics in crowded indoor spaces. Memorial masses are being held for the victims, including one in Crans-Montana, as investigators work to establish a precise timeline and confirm the cause.
Police urged patience as forensic teams match remains with missing persons reports. They said counseling and support services are available to relatives and witnesses affected by the tragedy.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
