About 40 people have been killed and 100 seriously injured after an explosion ripped through a packed bar during New Year’s celebrations in the luxury ski resort of Crans-Montana, Swiss officials said Thursday.
The fire broke out at 1:30 a.m. at the Le Constellation bar in the resort in southwest Switzerland. The cause of the explosion remains unknown, but authorities said it appeared to be an accident, Reuters reports.
– At the moment we consider this a fire and we are not considering the possibility of an attack – said prosecutor Beatrice Pilloud at a press conference, adding that the authorities have opened an investigation.
Some of the victims are from other countries, said Stephane Ganzer, head of security for the canton of Valais.
– Our number is about 100 injured, most of them seriously, and unfortunately tens of people are considered dead – he added, stating that the patients were sent to hospitals in Sion, Lausanne, Geneva and Zurich.
Italy’s foreign ministry said information from Swiss police indicated about 40 dead, but Gisler declined to give a precise number.
Earlier, police said many people were being treated for burns and the area was completely closed, with a no-fly zone over Crans-Montana. The authorities stated that ten helicopters and 40 ambulances had been deployed.
– What should have been a moment of joy turned, on the first day of the year in Crans-Montana, into a mourning that affects the whole country and far beyond – said Swiss President Guy Parmelin on the X network, expressing his condolences.
Prosecutor Pilloud said authorities are trying to hand over the victims’ bodies to their families.
– A lot of resources have been invested in forensics to identify the victims. Those resources are intended to enable the return of bodies to families as quickly as possible – she said.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the fire may have been caused by fireworks.
– It seems that it was an accident caused by a fire, an explosion, firecrackers thrown during the New Year’s celebration – he told the Italian television Sky TG24.
(TYPE/Source: Fena/Photo: X)
