Swiss President Guy Parmelin called the deadly Crans-Montana bar fire, which killed 40 people and injured 115, “one of the worst tragedies” the country has ever seen.Just after midnight on Thursday, a fire broke out during New Year’s celebrations at Le Constellation, a bar popular with international tourists. According to Swiss police, there were almost 100 people in the building at the time of the fire.
After the incident, Parmelin said authorities were investigating “the exact circumstances” of the incident. “We owe it to the victims,” their families and all Swiss citizens, he said, quoted by the BBC.He added that flags will fly at half-mast for five days and stressed that a “tragedy of such magnitude” must not be allowed to happen again.When asked by a journalist whether there were minors among the deceased, State Councilor Stéphane Ganzer said he would not describe the victims as minors, but added: “You can imagine on New Year’s Eve that the population is quite young.” We’re talking about a young, festive population.”Parmelin said the identification of the victims must be completed as quickly as possible, but stressed that the process is “extremely difficult work” and “something that will take a long time.”Parmelin thanked the countries that offered support after the fire, pointing in particular to neighboring countries France, Germany and Italy. He said communication with the families of foreign victims would be established through the foreign ministries.Previously, Parmelin, who took office on January 1stAuthorities have sealed off the area and established a no-fly zone as emergency operations continue. Around 10 helicopters, 40 ambulances and 150 emergency services were deployed on site. Officials said emergency operations would continue in the coming days.Officials described the fire as an “embrasement généralisé,” a fire service term that refers to a sudden and violent ignition from flammable gases, similar to what English-speaking firefighters call a flashover or backdraft.Beatrice Pilloud, attorney general for the canton of Valais, said: “At this time we are in favor of a fire and there is no possibility of an attack at any time.” She added that she could not provide further details out of respect for the families. Police have confirmed that the incident is not being classified as terrorist-related.
