Bern (TIP)- Sparklers attached to champagne bottles and held too close to the ceiling likely sparked the deadly fire at the “Le Constellation” bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, during a New Year’s party, killing at least 40 people, CNN quoted officials as saying.
The blaze reportedly spread rapidly due to a flashover, and Swiss prosecutors have opened an investigation into possible criminal responsibility. Earlier, at a press conference in Crans-Montana, Valais Cantonal Police Commander Frederic Gisler said authorities responded swiftly after a fire was reported at a bar in the area. According to Gisler, smoke was first seen coming from the bar in the centre of the Swiss ski resort at around 1:30 am. Moments later, a witness contacted the emergency call centre to report the incident. A red alert was immediately issued to mobilise firefighting services, he added. The first teams from the Crans-Montana intercommunal police and the gendarmerie reached the scene at 1:32 am, and were soon joined by additional emergency responders, CNN reported.
“Their initial assignment was obviously to take care of the victims, to provide them emergency help,” Gisler said. He noted that firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze quickly. “Following that, the initial investigations were able to start,” he said. Reception centres were later set up to assist those affected by the incident, and a helpline was launched at 4:14 am to provide information and support to families. “All of the injured people had received care by shortly after 5 am, thanks to this widescale mobilisation,” CNN quoted Gisler as saying.
Families of those who lost their lives in the fire at Crans-Montana are facing a painful wait, as local authorities said it could take several days to identify all of the approximately 40 victims, CNN reported.
“Currently and in the days to come, the priority will be identifying the people who have died so that their bodies can be returned quickly to their families,” Gisler said in a press conference.
Swiss bar fire was like ‘hell’: Survivors recount ski resort blaze
Ringing in the new year with a night of drinking and dancing high in the Swiss Alps, Ebenezer Mehari, 17, decided to take a breather outside the packed Constellation Bar.
As he turned to go back inside, he told NBC News at the scene Friday, “hell” erupted as a deadly fire broke out. “I heard a big boom, and everybody was screaming,” he said.
Mehari said a thick smoke enveloped the venue and the crowd, blinding him. He fell to the ground as people rushed to escape the bar, he said, but a man pulled him away to safety. His friends were not so lucky, he says. “I have four friends who died,” he said, still struggling to process the loss. “For me, it’s not real.”
Axel Clavier, 16, from Paris, told The Associated Press that he lost his jacket, shoes and phone while fleeing, though he was grateful to have made it out. “I am still alive and it’s just stuff,” he said. “I’m still in shock.”
Samuel Rapp said he was at a restaurant next door when the fire broke out.
“A lot of people were screaming and it was horrible,” Rapp told NBC News’ British broadcasting partner Sky News. “People were walking on everybody,” he said, adding that he “saw a lot of people on the floor, and I think these people were dead because someone put jackets on their faces.”
Hello there! Do you know if they make any
plugins to assist with Search Engine Optimization? I’m trying to get my blog
to rank for some targeted keywords but I’m not seeing very good gains.
If you know of any please share. Thank you!
Howdy! This blog post could not be written much better!
Reading through this post reminds me of my previous
roommate! He constantly kept talking about this.
I will send this information to him. Fairly certain he will have a great read.
Thanks for sharing!
Oh my goodness! Incredible article dude! Thank you so much, However I am encountering troubles with your RSS.
I don’t know why I am unable to subscribe to it. Is there anybody else having the same RSS problems?
Anybody who knows the answer can you kindly respond?
Thanx!!
I every time emailed this web site post page to all my
associates, since if like to read it after that my friends will too.
Great weblog right here! Also your site rather a lot
up very fast! What web host are you the usage of?
Can I am getting your associate link to your host?
I wish my web site loaded up as fast as yours lol
My family members every time say that I am killing my time here at net, except I know I am getting
knowledge everyday by reading such good articles or reviews.
I will immediately snatch your rss feed as I can’t in finding
your email subscription link or newsletter service.
Do you’ve any? Kindly permit me realize in order that I may subscribe.
Thanks.
Hi! This is kind of off topic but I need some advice from an established blog.
Is it hard to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal
but I can figure things out pretty quick. I’m thinking about creating my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you
have any points or suggestions? Appreciate it
Thanks for finally talking about > Swiss bar fire that killed 40 likely caused by champagne sparklers:
Officials — The Indian Panorama < Liked it!
Thanks for sharing your info. I really appreciate your
efforts and I am waiting for your further post thank you once
again.
Wonderful blog! I found it while surfing around on Yahoo News.
Do you have any tips on how to get listed in Yahoo News?
I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem to get there!
Cheers
Hello there, You have done an incredible job.
I will definitely digg it and personally recommend to my friends.
I’m sure they’ll be benefited from this web site.
What a material of un-ambiguity and preserveness of precious knowledge on the topic of unexpected feelings.
What’s up colleagues, how is all, and what you desire to say about this post, in my view its truly remarkable for me.
I am not sure where you are getting your info, but good topic.
I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding
more. Thanks for excellent information I was looking for this info for my mission.
When someone writes an paragraph he/she keeps the plan of a user
in his/her mind that how a user can be aware of
it. So that’s why this paragraph is perfect. Thanks!
For the reason that the admin of this website is working, no
doubt very soon it will be well-known, due to
its quality contents.
Simply wish to say your article is as astonishing. The clearness on your put up is simply spectacular and i can think you’re knowledgeable in this subject.
Well along with your permission allow me to clutch your RSS
feed to keep updated with impending post. Thanks a million and please carry on the rewarding work.
When some one searches for his necessary thing, so he/she wants to be available that in detail, so that thing is maintained over here.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I really appreciate your efforts and I am waiting for your further post thank you once again.
For the reason that the admin of this site is working, no
doubt very rapidly it will be well-known, due to its quality contents.
Remarkable! Its in fact remarkable post, I have got much clear idea about from this piece of
writing.
Its like you read my mind! You seem to know so much about this, like you wrote the book in it or something.
I think that you can do with some pics to drive the message home a little
bit, but other than that, this is excellent blog.
A fantastic read. I will definitely be back.
Hi there! I know this is kind of off topic but I was wondering which blog platform
are you using for this website? I’m getting tired of WordPress because I’ve
had issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform.
I would be awesome if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.