Prosecutors in Switzerland have opened a criminal investigation into two local officials over a fire at a nightclub in Crans-Montana that killed 40 people on New Year's Eve, according to documents and local media reports.
The municipality's head of public safety has been summoned to a hearing next Friday, while a former council fire safety officer is due to be questioned on 9 February. Their lawyers confirmed the hearings, with one lawyer saying his client would reserve any statement for the public prosecutors.
Both individuals are described as "defendants" in the case, according to documents from the prosecutor's office seen by Reuters, indicating that past and present town hall officials could be held responsible for safety failings at Le Constellation bar. The bar's French owners, Jacques and Jessica Moretti, already face formal charges of negligent manslaughter, negligent bodily harm and negligent arson.
The fire also injured 116 people, most of them teenagers. Authorities believe it started in the basement party room after sparklers attached to champagne bottles were held too close to a ceiling clad with soundproofing foam. Questions have been raised about the presence and accessibility of fire extinguishers and whether exits, including a reportedly narrow single staircase, complied with regulations.
The town's mayor admitted earlier this month that council safety officers had not carried out the obligatory annual safety check of the bar since 2019. Prosecutors rejected the council's request to become a party to the case, with one document stating there were "reasons to believe that the municipality failed in its duty to enforce the various regulations for which it was responsible".
The investigation aims to establish potential criminal responsibility on the part of owners, staff and authorities. The Morettis have expressed their "indescribable grief" and promised to cooperate fully. The fire is one of the worst disasters in modern Swiss history, according to Alexandre Edelmann of Presence Switzerland.
