Drama in Crans-Montana
Explosion in bar: dozens dead, over 100 injured
Following an explosion and subsequent inferno of flames in a bar in the Swiss luxury ski resort of Crans-Montana in the canton of Valais, 40 people are currently confirmed dead. Around 100 were injured in the bar, most of them seriously. The cause could have been pyrotechnics set off during a concert.
Around 100 people were injured in the bar, most of them seriously, said the commander of the Valais cantonal police, Frédéric Gisler, on Thursday. According to the authorities, some of the victims came from abroad. They did not provide any further details for the time being, citing the ongoing investigations and out of consideration for the families concerned. As things stand at present, no Austrians were among the victims, according to the Foreign Ministry in Vienna on Thursday.
According to the authorities, it is still unclear how the disaster occurred. At a press conference, it was said that it would take time to reconstruct the exact course of events. According to Swiss media, the fire or explosion may have been caused by the use of pyrotechnics during a concert.
Large contingent of emergency services
At the press conference, Gisler described the course of the night of the accident: at around 1.30 am, smoke was detected in a bar in the center of Crans, at the same time an emergency call was received by the police, whereupon the fire department was alerted. The first police patrols arrived at the scene shortly afterwards, followed shortly afterwards by a larger contingent of firefighters and police.
The first priority was to treat the injured and transport them to nearby hospitals, while firefighters began extinguishing the fire, securing the area and carrying out initial investigations into the cause of the accident.
Contact points for relatives are being set up, according to the commander. Psychological support services will also be set up to support families and provide information.
A rescue doctor told the French-speaking Swiss broadcaster RTS that people had been taken to nearby hospitals with severe burns. An overflight ban was imposed over the site. Eyewitnesses in Geneva reported that emergency helicopters were landing at the university hospital every few minutes. The ski resort is a good 100 kilometers away as the crow flies.
This footage is said to show scenes of the tragedy, in which around 40 people are believed to have died:
Help from Italy
The Swiss authorities are receiving support from the civil defense of the Aosta Valley - an Italian region on the border with Switzerland: a helicopter with mountain rescue specialists and medical personnel was requested by the Swiss and has been in operation there since 6.00 a.m., according to the Italian mountain rescue service.
A tourist from New York filmed orange flames shooting out of the bar. He told the AFP news agency that he saw people running out and screaming in the darkness. Pictures distributed by the Swiss media showed a burning building and people fleeing.
Accident in a fashionable vacation resort
Crans-Montana is located in the canton of Valais and is considered a fashionable resort with many celebrities. The most famous resident was James Bond actor Roger Moore (1927-2017). The resort at an altitude of around 1,500 meters has a large ski area. Ski World Cup races are also held there at the end of January.
Video: Scenes from the scene of the accident
The resort is usually fully booked over the holidays. There are around 2,600 hotel beds and hundreds of vacation apartments for every 10,000 inhabitants. With around one million overnight stays a year, around 20 percent of guests come from abroad, according to the local tourism authority.
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