A devastating fire at a popular bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana has claimed at least 47 lives, leaving desperate parents searching for missing children as the nation enters a period of mourning. The blaze tore through the basement venue, Le Constellation, shortly after midnight on New Year's Eve, also injuring 115 people, many with life-threatening wounds.
Panic and Desperation on New Year's Eve
The horror unfolded amid celebrations, with distressing footage suggesting champagne sparklers held by revellers ignited flammable material on the ceiling. The venue, known for its wooden furnishings and foam-style ceiling, quickly became a death trap with only one narrow staircase for escape.
Eyewitness accounts paint a picture of sheer panic. Alexis, an 18-year-old outside the club, saw flames erupt and people inside desperately trying to break the glass with chairs. "You could see the shadows. People were trying to break the glass... People were running through these flames," he told local media.
A Community Gripped by Anguish
In the aftermath, the resort has been plunged into heartbreak. Many of the revellers were young tourists aged 18 and 19, experiencing their first New Year's Eve as adults. Parents have been scouring the resort and calling every hospital in the region, hoping for news of their missing children.
"Many parents have been searching for their children," said 18-year-old Rayan Guiren. One mother recounted her frantic efforts to locate her missing 16-year-old son, so far without success. The scale of the tragedy has prompted Switzerland to declare five days of national mourning.
Harrowing Scenes of Survival and Loss
Survivors described unimaginable scenes. One young man told the BBC, "I saw people burning... I found people burning from head to foot, no clothes anymore. It was very shocking." Another witness, 21-year-old Alex, recalled the moment burned victims began rushing out: "I saw someone in their underwear, burned. That's when I realised there was definitely something wrong."
He described a chilling "smell of gas, of melted plastic" and said, "It sent a chill down my spine to think that there were possibly still 50 people trapped inside." While some, like the BBC interviewee's brothers, escaped without serious injury, many others were not so fortunate.
Police have not yet officially confirmed the cause of the fire as the investigation continues. The community in Crans-Montana, a location famed for international skiing and golf, now gathers in vigils, leaving flowers and candles at the scene of one of Switzerland's worst modern tragedies.
