Tragedy at a Swiss resort: fire claims the lives of around 40 people

The burns suffered mainly by young patrons of Le Constellation bar are so severe that, according to Swiss officials, it may take several days to identify the bodies, Reuters reports.

“The priority is to identify all the bodies,” said Crans-Montana Mayor Nicolas Ferro.

He said this could take several days.

The parents of the missing young people anxiously asked for information about their loved ones, and foreign embassies rushed to find out if any of their citizens were among the victims of one of the worst tragedies in modern Switzerland.

The head of the Valais cantonal government, Matthias Reiner, said that experts are using dental and DNA samples for this purpose.

“All this work has to be done, the information is so terrible and sensitive that nothing can be communicated to the families until we are 100 percent sure,” he said.

The cause of the fire remains unknown. Swiss authorities have stated that it does not appear to have been a terrorist attack.

Some survivor accounts and videos on social media suggest that the bar's ceiling may have caught fire when sparklers came too close to it.

Residents of Crans-Montana, which is known not only as a popular destination for skiers but also for golfers, were shocked by the fire. Many knew the victims, and some said they were lucky not to have been in the bar themselves.

Dozens of people left flowers or lit candles at a makeshift altar in Crans-Montana.

Photo: screenshot.