Crans-Montana’s community unites in grief after a deadly blaze at a popular bar, with many victims still unidentified and the bar’s operators under investigation.
CRANS-MONTANA: The Swiss Alpine resort of Crans-Montana is reeling from a devastating bar fire that killed at least 40 people on New Year’s Eve.
Most victims were young people, authorities said, in a tragedy that has shocked a nation unaccustomed to mass fatalities.
Local resident Annouk Perret visited the cordoned-off Le Constellation bar to pay her respects with her family.
Her 17-year-old daughter had wanted to enter the bar that night but was deterred by the long queue outside.
“She could have been dead, but is not. But others are dead,” Perret told Reuters.
The family later learned a friend of her daughter had entered the bar just before the fire and died.
Swiss authorities have identified only a few victims so far, with severe burns complicating the process.
Four more victims aged 16 to 21 were named, but most remain unidentified.
The two people who ran the bar are now under investigation for suspected crimes including homicide by negligence.
Witness Damiano Vizioli, 24, was outside smoking when the bar suddenly burst into flames.
He described seeing people with their clothes on fire scrambling to escape the inferno.
“I’m not sleeping well because I can hear the people screaming,” Vizioli said.
He returned to the bar seeking news of a missing friend who worked there.
The blaze affected many nationalities, with the injured and missing coming from across Europe and as far as Australia.
Most of those killed were Swiss, however.
Perret said mutual support was crucial for the tight-knit community of over 10,000 people.
“Everybody’s completely shaken,” she said, noting parents were calling each other constantly.
Local businessman Eric Schmid, 63, said the community had received messages of support from around the world.
“The scar will be quite deep, and I think it’ll take time to heal,” Schmid said.
He expressed faith in the resilience of the mountain community.
Pierre Pralong, 89, is anxiously awaiting word of his missing 22-year-old granddaughter, Emilie.
The uncertainty has caused the family great suffering, he said.
“I have a feeling she’s probably passed on into the next life,” Pralong said, finding solace in his faith.
