The fire in the Le Constellation bar in central Crans-Montana took a violent turn during New Year's celebrations.
Forty people have so far been confirmed dead in the fire, according to Swiss police. In addition, 119 people are injured, many of them seriously. Around 50 of them are being treated in hospitals outside Switzerland, including in France, Italy, and Belgium.
Swiss President Guy Parmelin called the incident "one of the worst tragedies ever in our country" and declared five days of national mourning.
The work of identifying the dead is ongoing, but is said to take days or even weeks. Several foreign nationals are believed to be among the victims, but not all of the injured have been identified. Of the 34 identified foreign nationals reported injured, none are Swedes, the authorities say. The nationality of eight of the injured has not been determined and a further six have not been identified at all.
The fire alarm was called in at 1:30 a.m. Witnesses described an explosive fire and said the ceiling caught fire when people waved champagne bottles with so-called ice torches in them. It has not yet been determined how the fire started, but authorities are currently assuming that the ice torches caused it.
The bar Le Constellation is described as a popular spot among young people. It consists of two floors, with a staircase leading down from the upper floor to a basement room, local newspaper Le Nouvelliste reports. According to several media outlets, the fire broke out in the basement, causing panic as people tried to get out.
It is unclear how many people were at the bar. Swiss Blick reports 200 people were present when the fire started, and, according to AFP, the venue has a capacity of 300 people.
