Switzerland resort fire latest news: ‘several dozen’ dead after blast at ski town of Crans-Montana, police say | Switzerland

Chris Michael in Crans-Montana, Switzerland

Ulysse Brozzo, 16, an instructor at the ESS ski school who lives in the town of Nyon on Lake Geneva but is one of the many seasonal workers who flock up to Crans-Montana and other Alpine resorts for the winter crowds, said several of his friends were in the club at the time of the fire.

He said he had spoken to some who were safe, but had yet to hear from others he knew were inside when the fire broke out. A friend of a friend was in a coma at Sion hospital.

“It’s a total tragedy,” he said. “There were hundreds of people inside.”

The venue was set over two floors, he said, with a bar on the main floor and narrow stairs leading to a basement nightclub below, where he speculated it would have been possible for people to have become trapped and incapacitated from smoke inhalation.

He said shisha pipes were available to smoke. “What people are saying is that the charcoal on the shisha could have spilled and caused the fire,” Brozzo said.

Authorities said investigations are continuing into the cause of the blaze, and noted only that they had ruled out a terrorist incident.

Brozzo added that he feared the disaster would harm the reputation of the town, which relies heavily on a largely European clientele who come to ski, eat in several Michelin-starred restaurants and shop at Moncler and Louis Vuitton. It has around 3,000 hotel rooms to its 10,000 residents.

Chris Michael

Chris Michael in Crans-Montana, Switzerland

The popular Swiss ski resort town of Crans-Montana was reeling Thursday morning after a fire tore through a crowded nightclub full of revellers celebrating New Year’s Eve.

Two women held each other and wept in front of the police cordon outside Le Constellation, while mourners left flowers. The club itself, which is frequented by younger people and tourists, was surrounded by police tents.

Shortly before 1pm, a Swiss police forensics team entered the tents. Behind the building, an apartment block – also called Le Constellation – had smashed windows, where firefighters had attempted to let the smoke from the blaze escape.

Crans-Montana is a bustling resort town of about 10,000 people perched high in the Valais canton of the Swiss Alps, with a view across the valley to the famed Matterhorn mountain. Unlike nearby Verbier, which attracts an Anglophone crowd, Crans-Montana is popular mainly with wealthy Europeans.

But le Constellation itself was more of a cheap and cheerful bar for younger people and tourists – several hundred of whom reportedly packed the basement dancefloor, which was accessible by a set of narrow stairs.

Deborah Cole

Dozens of people are presumed dead and about 100 injured, most of them seriously, in a fire at a bar in the Swiss Alps during a new year’s celebration at a luxury ski resort.

The blaze ripped through the packed bar, Le Constellation, early on Thursday in Crans-Montana, one of the top-ranked ski destinations in Europe, which lies about 25 miles (40km) north-west of Zermatt.

Swiss police believe about 40 people died, the Italian foreign ministry said in a statement. The victims are believed to come from several countries.

Rory Carroll

The cause of the fire at the Constellation Bar remains unconfirmed but initial reports that flames ripped across the ceiling and trapped people below will in Ireland evoke memories of a nightclub fire in 1981 that killed dozens.

The Stardust inferno in the north Dublin suburb of Artane was one of the worst disasters in the history of the Irish state – a conflagration that killed 48 people and injured 214, many of them teenagers.

The nightclub was hosting a Valentine’s Day dancing competition in the early morning of 14 February when flames ripped through walls and the roof and engulfed the venue within 10 minutes. Panicked parents rushed to the scene – as parents also did in Crans-Montana on Thursday.

The cause of the Stardust fire was never conclusively established. Relatives said investigations were botched and spent decades campaigning for an inquest, that was held in 2023.

The French president Emmanuel Macron has said his “thoughts are with the bereaved families” in a post on X.

He wrote:

Deep emotion following the fire in Crans-Montana. My thoughts are with the bereaved families and the injured.

To Switzerland, its people, and its authorities, I extend France’s full solidarity and fraternal support.

It comes as several French media outlets reported that at least two of the injured are French nationals.

Two women have told French broadcaster BFMTV that they were inside when they saw a barman carrying a barmaid on his shoulders.

The barmaid was holding a lit candle in a bottle that set fire to the wooden ceiling, AP reported. The flames quickly spread and collapsed the ceiling, they told the broadcaster.

One of the women described a crowd surge as people frantically tried to escape from a basement nightclub up a narrow flight of stairs and through a narrow door.

Deborah Cole

“What was meant to be a moment of joy turned, on the first day of the year in Crans-Montana, into mourning that touches the entire country and far beyond,” Swiss president Guy Parmelin said on X, expressing condolences.

Thursday was Parmelin’s first day in office as head of state as the seven members of Switzerland’s government take turns holding the presidency for one year.

Out of respect for the families of the victims, he delayed a traditional New Year address to the nation meant to be broadcast Thursday afternoon, Swiss broadcasters SRF and RTS reported.

Swiss police have released images of the damage caused by the fire at the Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana.

Tables and chairs are pictured strewn across the bar area, giving an insight into the panic as revellers attempted to flee the fire.

A witness who spoke to French broadcaster BFMTV described people smashing windows to escape the blaze, some gravely injured, and panicked parents rushing to the scene in cars to see whether their children were trapped inside.

The witness said he saw about 20 people scrambling to get out of the smoke and flames and likened what he saw to a horror movie as he watched from across the street.

The UK’s foreign office said staff are ready to help any British nationals affected by the fatal fire at a bar in the Crans-Montana ski resort in Switzerland.

It is understood there have not been any requests for consular assistance from any UK nationals or their families so far.

In the statement, a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said:

Our thoughts are with all those injured and killed in the terrible tragedy in Crans-Montana, and we pay tribute to the Swiss emergency services who are leading the response.

We will continue to monitor the situation, and our consular staff stand ready to support any British nationals who may be affected.

The UK embassy in Switzerland has said it has not yet been approached in relation to the tragedy.

It said on X:

Swiss emergency services are responding to a fire in Crans-Montana, with nationals from multiple countries likely affected. We continue to monitor the situation.

Whilst we have not been approached for assistance, our staff stand ready to support British nationals abroad 24/7.

If you are a British national in need of consular assistance, you can call us 24/7 on + 44 (0) 20 7008 5000.

Crans-Montana is one of the top race venues on the World Cup circuit in Alpine skiing and will host the next world championships over two weeks in February 2027.

In four weeks’ time, the resort will host the best men’s and women’s downhill racers for their last events before going to the Milan Cortina Olympics, AP reports.

Crans-Montana also is a premium venue in international golf. The Crans-sur-Sierre club stages the European Masters each August on a picturesque course with stunning mountains views.

In a region busy with tourists skiing on the slopes, the authorities have called on the local population to show caution in the coming days to avoid any accidents that could require medical resources that are already overwhelmed, AP reported.

The community is in the heart of the Swiss Alps, just 40km (25 miles) north of the Matterhorn, one of the most famous Alpine peaks, and 130km (81 miles) south of Zurich.

The highest point of Crans-Montana, with a population of 10,000 residents, sits at an elevation of nearly 3,000m (1.86 miles), according to the municipality’s website, which says officials are seeking to move away from a tourist culture and attract high-tech research and development.

• Police have confirmed that “several dozen” people have died in the explosion, with around 100 injured.

• The Italian foreign ministry have said information from Swiss police suggested about 40 deaths, but police were not more specific than “dozens” at the press conference.

• At around 1.30am local time, smoke was noted at the bar and emergency services were called. Fire and police patrols “rapidly reached the site”.

• There were several hundred people affected by the blast, and from many different nationalities, officials have said. They said it will take time to uncover who has been killed and injured, and where they are from, with many nationalities likely to have been involved.

• Firefighters have been mobilised from across the entire region, officials said.

• Many victims have “severe burns”, officials added. The local hospitals’ intensive care units “are full” and some patients are having to be transferred to hospitals in other cantons for urgent care.

• There is no suggestion that this was a terrorist attack, police confirmed.

• The area has been completely closed off, and a no-fly zone has been imposed over Crans-Montana, police said in a statement.

• A police official told this morning’s press conference that everyone involved in the operation is “stunned” by this “painful moment”.

The press conference has now ended. We will bring you a summary of the key points soon.

“It is probable that victims will be of different nationalities,” officials say, adding that they are working with other countries to establish this.

They stress they cannot give precise numbers until they are certain, but repeat that “several dozens” have died.

At the press conference, officials are being asked about the fire standards at Le Constellation bar and lounge, where the explosion took place, amid reports some people were “trapped” in the building. There have also been unconfirmed reports that fireworks, or pyrotechnics, might have been a cause.

The investigation is ongoing, police say, and they cannot confirm any details, but remain confident it was not a terrorist attack due to the nature of the blaze.

It was not an explosive device that caused the fire.