Swiss resort fire: Sparklers likely cause, authorities say

The fire in a bar in the Alps that resulted in the deaths of some 40 people was likely resulted from bottles topped by sparklers that were held too close to the ceiling, Swiss authorities say.

According to Beatrice Pilloud, attorney general of the canton of Valais, investigators examined videos and interviewed witnesses before arriving at the conclusion.

Commander of the Valais police Frederic Gisler said 119 people were injured as a result of the fire at the Le Constellation bar in the Crans-Montana, with 113 of them already being identified.

The list of those admitted to various hospitals includes 71 Swiss nationals, 14 French citizens, 11 Italians and four Serbs.

A sixteen-year-old survivor has recounted how he survived the fire in the Swiss bar in which some 40 people lost their lives.

He was able to escape by forcing a window open using a table, despite almost suffocating.

Two or three of his friends are still missing, he told AP.

The young survivor from Paris said he had seen a waitress carrying a champagne bottle with burning sparklers.

Two women told French BFMTV that a male bartender had been lifting a female bartender holding a lit candle in a bottle, resulting in the flames spreading through the wooden ceiling.

Other describes smashing the windows to escape the fire.

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Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us as we continue our coverage of the deadly fire in the Swiss ski resort town of Crans-Montana that killed about 40 people and injured more than 100, including Australian, Italian, French and Polish nationals.

Authorities are working to identify the victims of the fire in the upscale resort town known for its ski slopes and golf courses.

The scale of the tragedy has prompted an international rescue effort, with countries like Poland and Italy offering medical assistance.

Hearses have additionally arrived at a funeral center in Sion, the capital of the local canton of Valais.

The circumstances of the fire are still not entirely clear.

An investigation is trying to determine whether narrow exits at the basement club and sparklers on a champagne bottle (see here) are to blame , with officials saying they will release more information about the cause of the fire once it has been established.

Swiss officials described the blaze as an "embrasement généralisé," a French firefighting term describing how a blaze can trigger the release of combustible gas that can then ignite violently and cause what English-speaking firefighters would call a flashover.

Authorities urged people to show caution in the coming days to avoid any accidents as medical facilities are overwhelmed by the scale of the accident.

A mother looking for her 16-year-old son told French broadcaster BFMTV that she won't give up the fight to know if her son is alive or dead.

"I have been searching for ⁠my son for 30 hours. The wait is unbearable," said Laetitia, the mother of Arthur.

"If ‌he's in the hospital, I don't know which hospital he's in. If he's in the morgue, I don't know which morgue he's in. If my son ⁠is alive, he's alone in the hospital, and I can't be by his side," she said.

Authorities have begun the process of identifying victims killed in the fire in Crans-Montana and said the process will take time because many of the bodies are badly burned.

Swiss authorities began moving the bodies of victims of the Crans-Montana fire to a funeral center in Sion, the capital of the canton of Valais.

The AFP news agency reported that the first silver-colored hearse rolled into the funeral center in Sion shortly after 11 a.m. (1000 GMT) Friday. It was followed by several other hearses.

Australian Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen told ABC Radio National that one Australian had been injured in the blaze in the ski resort of Crans-Montana.

"It's clearly a terrible, terrible tragedy, and I’m sure all Australians send their condolences to the people of Switzerland, the people involved," Bowen said.

Polish, French and Italian citizens have also been listed among the people injured, according to their respective governments.

Some 115 people were injured in the fire that broke out around 1:30 a.m. local time on Thursday morning.

There were 14 Polish nationals injured in the fire in Crans-Montana, Poland's prime minister said in a post on X.

Donald Tusk shared his condolences with the families and the loved ones of victims of the fire, adding that his country was ready to provide specialized medical assistance, at Switzerland's request, to the Poles injured in the tragedy.

The first victim of the fire that tore through Le Constellation bar in the early hours of Thursday morning has been named as a young Italian athlete, Emanuele Galeppini.

The Italian Golf Federation paid tribute to the young athlete in a post on its website, writing it mourns "the passing of Emanuele Galeppini, a young athlete who embodied passion and authentic values."

"Emanuele, you will forever remain in our hearts," the post said.

Italian media have widely shared the news, but authorities have yet to confirm the news officially.

The Italian foreign minister on Thursday said he offered Switzerland help to have some of the people injured treated at a burn center in the Niguarda Hospital in Milan.

Those injured in the fire in a bar in Crans-Montana suffered serious burns and smoke inhalation, with many flown out to specialist hospitals across Switzerland.

Thirteen of the wounded were Italian citizens, and another six Italians were unaccounted for, the Italian ambassador to Switzerland, Gian Lorenzo Cornado, told Italy's state-run RAI television.

France's Foreign Ministry said nine French people are among the injured and eight are missing.

Top-flight French soccer team FC Metz said one of its trainee players, 19-year-old Tahirys Dos Santos, was badly burned and has been transferred by plane to Germany for treatment.

Crans-Montana is a famous Alpine resort town known for its ski slopes and high-altitude golf courses, making it a popular tourist destination in Europe.

Swiss officials are examining the cause of the fire that killed around 40 people in a bar in the Swiss Alps on Thursday morning.

The bar, called Le Constellation, is a two-story bar located in a town in the French-speaking part of the canton of Valais.

The bar is a popular one in the town of Crans-Montana, especially among young people. It's known as a less expensive alternative to many of the town's other nightlife options.

The fire that broke out around 1:30 a.m. (0300 GMT) Thursday is believed to have begun in the basement.

Two women told French broadcaster BFMTV they were inside when they saw a male bartender lifting another female member of staff on his shoulders as she held a lit sparkler in a bottle.

The flames then spread quickly, collapsing the wooden ceiling, they told the broadcaster.

People frantically tried to escape from the basement club up a narrow flight of stairs and through a narrow door, causing a crowd surge, one of the women said.

People also smashed windows to escape, a young man at the scene said.

As people held a nighttime vigil to pay tribute to victims of the Swiss bar fire, some gathered there described the emotions that played out in their minds as they watched the tragedy unfold.

People gathered near the Le Constellation bar to pay tribute to the victims of the Swiss bar fire that killed almost 40.

The fire broke out just after midnight on January 1, as New Year's celebrations continued into the night.

The mood at the vigil was quiet, as people stood next to each other in grief, many still searching for answers and hoping to receive news of their loved ones.