LENS, Switzerland, Jan 1 (Reuters) - About 40 people have been killed and 100 injured, most of them seriously, after an explosion ripped through a crowded bar during a New Year's Eve party in the elite ski resort of Crans-Montana, Swiss authorities said on Thursday.
The fire broke out at around 1:30 a.m. (00:30 GMT) in a bar called "Le Constellation" in the southwestern Swiss resort. The cause of the explosion remains unclear, but authorities said it appeared to be an accident.
"We have counted around 100 people injured, most of them seriously."
"At this moment we are treating the incident as a fire and are not considering the possibility of an attack," prosecutor Beatrice Pilloud told a news conference, adding that authorities have opened a full investigation.
Some of the victims are foreign nationals, said Stéphane Ganzer, the security chief for the canton of Valais. The canton's police director, Frédéric Gisler, announced that a helpline had been set up for relatives.
“I cannot hide from you that we are all shocked by what happened overnight in Crans,” Gisler said at the press conference.
“Our toll is around 100 injured, most seriously, and unfortunately dozens of people are suspected of having lost their lives,” he added, explaining that the patients were taken to hospitals in Sion, Lausanne, Geneva and Zurich.
The Italian Foreign Ministry said that information from Swiss police spoke of around 40 victims, but Gisler refused to give an exact figure.
Earlier, police announced that several people were being treated for burns and that the area had been completely sealed off, while a flight ban was imposed over Crans-Montana. Authorities said 10 helicopters and 40 ambulances were deployed.
“What should have been a moment of joy turned, on the first day of the year in Crans-Montana, into a mourning that affects the entire country and much beyond,” wrote the president of the Swiss Confederation, Guy Parmelin, on X, expressing condolences.
Prosecutor Pilloud said authorities are trying to return the bodies of the victims to their families.
"Many resources have been made available for the forensic identification of the victims. These resources are aimed at returning the bodies to the families as soon as possible," she said.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the fire could have been caused by fireworks.
“It seems to have been an accident caused by a fire, by an explosion, by a projectile thrown during New Year’s celebrations,” he told Italian television channel Sky TG24.
