Around 40 people are presumed dead and another 115 are injured after a fire broke out during a New Year’s celebration at a bar in the Swiss Alps, according to the latest estimate given by officials on Thursday. The fire started at about 1:30 a.m. local time in a bar called “Le Constellation” in the Alpine ski resort municipality of Crans-Montana.
The location is about two hours from the Swiss capital of Bern in a region known as Valais Canton.
“What was a moment of joy turned into a tragedy in Crans-Montana last night, felt across the country and beyond,” Switzerland’s president, Guy Parmelin, wrote on X.
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40 killed, 115 injured
During a press conference Thursday afternoon, police in Crans-Montana estimated the death toll and injury numbers, saying the totals are preliminary.
About 60 people were taken to a hospital in Sion, near the resort town, overwhelming hospitals and medical professionals there.
NBC News reports that a local hospital quickly had to redirect patients from the fire to other intensive care units because its own reached full capacity.
At the press conference, a local official told residents, “If you want to be useful, be careful. Do not clog emergency services with situations that can be avoided.”
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President Guy Parmelin of Switzerland attended the press conference on Thursday, calling the fire “one of the worst tragedies our country has ever experienced” and saying that “many lives, young for the most part, have been lost.”
Cause and investigation
Officials say it is still too early to determine the cause of the fire and subsequent explosion. However, “at no moment is there a question of any kind of attack,” said Beatrice Pilloud, attorney general of the Valais Canton.
During the press conference, she said, “I am not in a position to confirm anything. The investigation is ongoing.”
Pilloud also noted that the main focus right now is identifying the victims and returning bodies to their families. She said police have interviewed several witnesses and are analyzing cell phones left at the scene.
“There are still many circumstances to be clarified,” she said. “The current leading theory is that a widespread fire caused an explosion.”
Pilloud added that officials have launched an investigation, but not into any specific person. She said it’s to “shed light on the circumstances surrounding this tragic fire.”
Police from the region imposed a no-fly zone over Crans-Montana. The town has about 10,000 residents and has around 2,800 hotel beds.