At least 80 of those injured in the Swiss fire have severe burns and their lives are feared for.
Authorities did not confirm the cause, but everything points to a flare that may have set fire to the roof of the building.
BarcelonaSwiss authorities are still investigating the origin of The fire in a bar on the corner of Valais on New Year's Eve, which has left at least 40 dead and 115 injuredMost of the injured are very serious, so the death toll could rise. "A large number of the injured, perhaps between 80 and 100, are in danger of dying," Stéphane Ganzer, the region's health and safety official, told French radio station RTL. "When 15 percent or more of an adult's body has third-degree burns, there is a risk of death in the following days and hours," he warned. Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the fire. But according to several witnesses and videos of the moment the fire started, everything seems to point to a flare attached to a champagne bottle. Patrons who frequent the bar say that bottles with flares are common in the establishment, but in this case, the pyrotechnics appear to have ignited the ceiling. Le Constellation.
The fire spread rapidly through the bar, which is a basement establishment with only one entrance, creating a fatal bottleneck. While awaiting confirmation of the cause, Swiss media also suggested that the fire may have been started by pyrotechnic devices used during a concert.
Monitoring of hospitalized patients
The death toll is feared to rise in the coming hours, as several of the hospitalized injured have severe burns. Swiss authorities are reporting 40 deaths, but Italy, one of the countries from which many of the victims are believed to originate, puts the figure at 47. Its Foreign Minister deemed the use of flares in the bar "irresponsible." The count is also complicated because most of the deceased, and some of the injured, have yet to be identified. Only one body was identified this Friday morning: that of a 16-year-old Italian boy. Several family members and friends have appealed for help on social media to find the missing.
"The first objective is to assign names to all the bodies," the mayor of Crans-Montana, the town where the burned-down bar is located, stated Thursday night. Faced with charred bodies—and in many cases, their documents—the mayor of this corner of Valais explained that identifications are being carried out using dental and DNA samples, and Swiss authorities have indicated that it could take days to identify everyone.
For now, according to the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there are no reports of any missing Spaniards. Italy and France have reported the disappearance of some of their citizens. Australia, for its part, confirms that one of its citizens was injured.
Spontaneous tribute to the victims
On Thursday evening, hundreds of people gathered in silence near Le Constellation to pay tribute to the victims. Some brought flowers and candles, and a makeshift altar was formed by the road leading to the bar, which remained in place on Friday, a day on which displays of support and tributes continued in Crans-Montana.
