Crans-Montana mourns: Hundreds gather in freezing temperatures for Swiss bar fire vigil

Crans-Montana: Hundreds of mourners gathered in freezing temperatures Thursday evening to hold a silent vigil for the victims of a New Year’s Day inferno that devastated a popular local bar.

The gathering took place near the site of Le Constellation, where a fire erupted around 1:30 a.m. on Wednesday, claiming approximately 40 lives and leaving more than 100 people injured. Mourners laid wreaths and lit candles on a temporary memorial table, while others placed individual lights directly onto the frozen ground.

The scene was one of profound shock. White screens blocked the charred remains of the bar from public view as police officers stood guard at a security cordon. Nearby, several local establishments remained closed as a mark of respect, even as holiday lights continued to twinkle in the Alpine resort.

"I wasn't (at the bar) myself, but I had many friends and relatives who were," said a young man identified as Orosstevic, who lost or saw hospitalised about 10 people he knew through his parents. "Some died, others are in the hospital. About 10," he told AFP. "They're mostly friends of my parents, but I know them very well. May they rest in peace."

The sense of narrow escape haunted many in attendance. Mathys, a resident of nearby Chermignon-d'en-Bas, said he frequented the bar almost every weekend and only missed the New Year’s celebration by chance.

"It's a bar where we meet up with lots of friends, really, almost every weekend. It was one of the only weekends we weren't there," Mathys said. "We thought it was just a small fire -- but when we got there, it was war. That's the only word I can use to describe it: the apocalypse. It was terrible."

Paulo Martins, a French national living in the area, described his 17-year-old son’s shock after narrowly deciding not to enter the bar with his girlfriend. "My son could very well have been in there. He wasn't far away," Martins said. "He was with his girlfriend; they were supposed to go in. And in the end, they didn't make it there. When he came home, he was really in shock." Martins added that one of his son's friends had been flown to Germany for specialised treatment with burns covering 30 per cent of his body.

The tragedy has left many families in agonising suspense. One unidentified woman, walking away from the floral tributes, noted that she still had no information regarding a loved one. "There are dead and injured, and we have someone close to us who is still missing. We have no news of them," she said.

Mina, another resident, said her son was also a regular who happened to be elsewhere when the fire broke out. She lamented the loss of a staff member her son knew well. "Last night, it was just a coincidence that he wasn't there," she said. "There is a waitress he knows, she serves him all the time, he's very friendly with her, and unfortunately, she's gone."

Earlier in the day, a solemn memorial mass was held at the Montana Station church. A local parishioner named Jean-Claude remarked on the sermon’s focus on resilience. "There were a lot of people, it was very solemn, and there was a beautiful sermon about hope. At least let us have that: hope," he said.

As the vigil concluded, Veronica, an Italian resident of Crans-Montana for four decades, summed up the communal grief. "The pain of others is everyone's pain," she said.

With inputs from AFP