Alessandro Della Valle / EPA
Tributes to the victims of the fire that broke out in the Le Constellation bar in the Crans-Montana ski resort, Switzerland
Witnesses saw a bar employee in the Crans-Montana resort carrying an employee on his shoulders while she was holding a lit candle in a bottle. The flames spread, collapsing the wooden roof. The fire led to a desperate attempt to escape.
Swiss authorities are still investigating the causes of the fire that broke out in the bar Le Constellation from the ski resort of Crans-Montanain Switzerland, which caused at least . Many of the victims were tourists.
The resort is best known as an international ski and golf venue. During the night, the bar went from a place of revelry to that of one of Switzerland’s worst tragedies. The fire started around 1:30 am this Thursday, inside the bar, in full year-end celebrations.
“We counted around 40 dead and around 115 injured, most of them in serious condition”, announced the police chief, Frédéric Gislerduring a press conference in Sion, while at his side the president of the confederation, Guy Parmelinsaid that this was “one of the worst tragedies” that Switzerland has ever known.
Are ongoing work to identify victims and inform their families, according to Gisler.
The incident occurred in the basement of the establishment, a popular tourist destination, where many young people were participating in a New Year’s party.
The Attorney General of the Canton of Valais, Béatrice Pilloudexplained that “the main theory is that of a widespread fire that caused an explosion. There are absolutely nono possibility of terrorist attack“, he added, without providing further details about the origin of the flames.
The Valais state councilor, Stéphane Ganzerresponsible for security, told the press that there was an explosionbut it was a consequence of a fire has spread.
Most of the injured, many of them seriousoccurred when the fire spread through the bar which was full to celebrate the new year. The victims suffered severe burns and smoke inhalation. Some were flown to specialized hospitals across the country.
Although they mentioned that it was too early to determine the cause of the fire, Swiss authorities have already ruled out the possibility that it was an attack.
Two women told the woman they were inside the establishment when saw a bar employee carrying an employee on your shoulders while held a lit birthday candle in a bottle of champagne. The flames spread, collapsing the wooden ceiling, they told the station.
“One of the candles was too close to the ceilingwhich caught fire. In a few seconds, the entire ceiling was on fire. Everything was made of wood“, explains one of the witnesses.
The people tried desperately to escape from the basement nightclub up a narrow staircase and through a narrow door, forming a crowd, one of the women said.
Another young man who was at the scene said that people broke windows to escape the fire and that some were seriously injured, and to have seen around 20 people fighting to get out of the smoke and flamescomparing what happened to a horror movie.
The burning of fireworks during New Year’s Eve celebrations was prohibited in Crans Montana, with local authorities placing posters in the town notifying the closure, due to the drought situation, with a lack of snow and temperatures above normal for winter.
There are no Portuguese among the victims
Contacted by the Lusa agency, an official source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that “So far there is no indication of Portuguese victims”, but it is necessary to wait, taking into account the number of Portuguese who live in Switzerland and the Canton of Valais, where the fire occurred.
The same source added that Portugal is monitoring the situation and in contact with the Swiss authorities and highlighted that emergency contacts for situations of this type have not received any requests.
270 thousand Portuguese live in Switzerland and in the Canton of Valais 64 thousand.
For his part, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousaexpressed solidarity with the President of Switzerland, Guy Parmelin, “for the tragedy that marked the passing of the year, causing so many deaths and injuries at a time that would have been one of joy and hope”.
The European Commission said it was “in contact” with Swiss authorities to provide medical assistance to victims of the fire. Switzerland has activated the European Union (EU) civil protection mechanism.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyenwho expressed his “profound sadness” over the tragedy and stated that “Europe is in full solidarity with Switzerland”.
For its part, the Belgian government declared that it “will act in solidarity with the Swiss authorities” within the scope of the aforementioned mechanism. It indicated that it will provide treatment in its hospitals for five patients with serious burns and two who require intermediate care.
The Belgian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Maxime Prévotadded that on Friday morning they will send a medical support team made up of a team leader, two doctors and two nurses specializing in severe burns.
Crans Montana is a winter sports resort that attracts tourists from all over the world, located in the heart of the Swiss Alpsabout 40 kilometers north of the Matterhorn, one of the most famous alpine peaks, and with a population of around 10,000 residents.
Com ski slopes at almost 3,000 meters of altitude In the heart of the snow-capped peaks and pine forests of the Valais region, Crans-Montana is one of the best venues on the World Cup circuit.
