LONDON — “A number of” dozen individuals have been presumed killed and about 100 others have been injured early on New Yr’s Day, as a hearth ripped via a preferred bar in a resort city within the Swiss Alps, police stated.
A blaze of “undetermined origin” broke out on the Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana at about 1:30 a.m. native time, the Cantonal Police of Valais stated in a press release.
Rescuers and fire-fighters work on the web site of an explosion that ripped via a bar in Crans-Montana on Jan. 1, 2026.
Maxime Schmid/AFP through Getty Photos
Investigators have been engaged on Thursday to find out the reason for the fireplace, officers stated throughout a morning press convention. The incident was not being investigated as an assault, they added.
“A big contingent of police, firefighters, and rescue personnel instantly responded to the scene to help the quite a few victims,” police stated of their earlier assertion.
Rescuers are seen on the web site of an explosion that ripped via a bar in Crans-Montana in Switzerland on Jan. 1, 2026.
Maxime Schmid/AFP through Getty Photos
Officers described the emergency response as “main,” including that the realm close to the Alpine bar had been closed to the general public.
A no-fly zone was put in place over Crans-Montana, police stated of their assertion. The resort city is well-liked with skiers and sits in Switzerland’s southern Sierre District within the Canton of Valais.
Cops stroll on the web site of a fireplace that ripped via a bar in Crans-Montana, within the canton of Valais, Switzerland, on Jan. 1, 2026.
Maxime Schmid/AFP through Getty Photos
Police haven’t launched the identities of those that have been killed within the blaze. Officers on Thursday stated it was doubtless, given the recognition of the realm with vacationers, that among the deceased have been vacationers who’d traveled to the Alpine city to rejoice New Yr’s Eve.
The French International Affairs Ministry stated in a press release that no less than two French nationals have been among the many injured. French officers have been “in fixed contact with the Swiss authorities in case different nationals are affected,” the ministry stated.
ABC Information’ Tom Soufi-Burridge contributed to this report.
