Champagne Sparkler Sparks Inferno Killing 47 in Seconds at Swiss Ski Bar
A sparkler in a champagne bottle is believed to have caused a Swiss ski bar inferno that killed at least 47 revellers yesterday. Families face an agonising wait to find out whether loved ones died in the early hours at Le Constellation in Crans-Montana, south-west Switzerland. Officials warned it could take days to identify badly burned victims. The Foreign Office is on standby to help any British nationals after rescue chiefs said international citizens were among the dead.
In This Article:
The Spark That Ignited the Inferno
Witnesses said a waitress waved a sparkler in a champagne bottle while sitting on a colleague's shoulders, igniting the ceiling and setting the wood-panelled basement alight. The blaze spread in seconds, forcing a stampede as more than 100 partygoers, mostly teens and young adults, fought to get up a single, narrow staircase that was the only way out and then get out of the ground floor, which was also engulfed.
The Stampede and the Struggle to Escape
The blaze spread in seconds, forcing a stampede as more than 100 partygoers, mostly teens and young adults, fought to get up a single, narrow staircase that was the only way out and then get out of the ground floor, which was also engulfed. Rescuers said that more than 115 survivors were being treated in hospital, many with appalling burns. Survivors have been taken to hospitals and burns clinics in Switzerland, France and Italy.
Reactions, Mourning and Local Accounts
Swiss president Guy Parmelin said yesterday it was 'one of the worst tragedies our country has experienced'. A photo appears to show the moment champagne sparklers set the nightclub on fire People gathered at the site of the party on New Years Day as part of a vigil Police commander Frederic Gisler confirmed the fire 'started in the basement' and there was a crush as people tried to flee up the single staircase. King Charles wrote to Mr Parmelin to offer his condolences, saying he and the Queen 'were appalled, and greatly saddened'. He added: 'It is utterly heartbreaking that a night of celebration for young people and families instead turned to such nightmarish tragedy.' Questions were asked last night as to how the inferno could have happened, with locals claiming sparklers were banned in many venues because of the fire risk. Jessica Moretti, 40, who owns Le Constellation with her husband Jacques, 49, was inside at the time but escaped with only an injury to her arm. Mr Moretti was in another of the couple's venues. The couple were said to be 'completely in shock' as investigators determine whether the bar was 'a disaster waiting to happen'. Locals gave horrifying accounts of victims burning 'from head to foot' and bodies in the snow 'shirtless, disfigured, burned'. The 22 victims with the worst injuries identified so far are aged 16 to 26, with most of those in the bar reportedly aged under 20. Survivors have been taken to hospitals and burns clinics in Switzerland, France and Italy.
Cause and the Flashover Theory
Police commander Frederic Gisler confirmed the fire 'started in the basement' and there was a crush as people tried to flee up the single staircase. While authorities refused to speculate on the exact cause, witnesses and video footage suggest it was started by the sparkler. Survivors said a table of customers made a large drinks order, prompting a waitress to get on her colleague's shoulders and wave the sparkler for them. One told local journalists that the candle 'was very close to the ceiling' which caught fire 'in a matter of seconds'. Images of the bar also show soundproofing foam fitted on the ceiling - a potentially flammable material. Video footage shows the ceiling catch fire rapidly before the blaze spread through the mostly wooden building. Social media pages for the venue were quickly taken down, but an old video shows sparklers being used liberally at Le Constellation, which has a capacity of up to 300 customers. A local bus driver said the 'firecrackers' are 'banned in a lot of clubs'. 'They should never be allowed anywhere near crowded places,' he said. 'This is an absolute tragedy.' The authorities said the blaze became a 'flashover' - a rapidly growing fire in an enclosed space that causes all flammable surfaces to ignite instantly - which could explain explosions reported by witnesses. New footage shows the deadly flashover, when extreme heat caused everything inside the enclosed space to ignite almost at once, that left people little chance to flee.
