Swiss authorities open prison investigation into ski bar after hearth left 40 individuals lifeless
Authorities in Switzerland have opened an investigation into the managers of a ski bar after 40 people were killed in a fire that broke out at the venue.
More than 100 people were injured in the blaze that broke out about 1.30am on Thursday at the Le Constellation bar in the Alpine resort town of Crans-Montana.
Police said the managers are suspected of negligent homicide, negligent bodily harm and causing fire by negligence.
Investigators said on Friday that they believe sparklers in Champagne bottles ignited the fatal fire when they came too close to the ceiling of the crowded bar.
The process of identifying the dead and injured was still under way on Saturday, leading to an agonising wait for relatives desperate for news.
Many of the injured were in their teens to mid-20s, police said.
Authorities planned to look into whether sound-dampening material on the ceiling conformed with regulations and whether the candles were permitted for use in the bar.
Officials said they would also look at other safety measures on the premises, including fire extinguishers and escape routes. The region’s top prosecutor has warned of possible prosecutions if any criminal liability is found.
The Valais region’s top security official, Stephane Ganzer, told SRF public radio Saturday that “such a huge accident with a fire in Switzerland means that something didn’t work – maybe the material, maybe the organisation on the spot.”
He added: “Something didn’t work and someone made a mistake, I am sure of that.”
Nicolas Feraud, who heads the Crans-Montana municipality, told RTS radio he was “convinced” checks on the bar had not been lax, the broadcaster reported.
Source: independent.co.uk
