Around 40 people, including many youths, were killed and 115 others injured after a fire tore through a crowded bar during a New Year's Eve party in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana, officials have said.
"We count around 40 people who have died and around 115 injured, most of them seriously," Frederic Gisler, police commander in the Valais canton in southwestern Switzerland, told reporters.
Swiss President Guy Parmelin described the disaster as "one of the worst tragedies that our country has ever known" and said most of the dead were young people.
The fire broke out at 1.30am local time (12.30am Irish time) as revellers were celebrating in a bar called Le Constellation in the ski resort, which locals said was popular with teenagers.
The cause of the blaze, which was initially reported as an explosion, remains unclear but authorities said it appeared to be an accident rather than an attack.
Authorities warned that naming the victims or establishing a definitive death toll would take time because many of the bodies were badly burned. Experts were using dental and DNA records to try to identify the dead.
Two young French women who said they were in the bar told France's BFM TV that they saw the fire start in the basement section of the club after a bottle containing "birthday candles" was held up too close to the wooden ceiling.
"The fire spread across the ceiling super quickly," one of the two women, who identified themselves as Emma and Albane, said. The pair said they were able to climb a narrow staircase to the ground floor and escape the building.
Minutes later, the fire had reached the ground floor too, they said.
Watch: Video footage shows fire spreading from the building with people outside the club, some running and screaming
Local prosecutor Beatrice Pilloud said an investigation had been opened into the blaze at the bar, which Swiss company records showed was owned by a French couple, but she said it was too early to comment on any possible safety failures.
"There are still many circumstances to be clarified... The most likely scenario at present is that a widespread fire caused an explosion," she told the press conference.
Witnesses said many of those celebrating in the bar appeared to be from different countries. Foreign governments were calling around to establish whether their nationals were among the victims but were facing a lengthy process because the severity of the burns had rendered identification challenging, one European official said.
"We met the families this afternoon and it's terrible because to be in front of them with all their fear and apprehension and terrible anxiety and we don’t have all the answers. And we won’t have them straight away because identifying them will take time. It’s a terrible situation on the ground. Unimaginable," Mathias Reynard, president of the Valais cantonal government, said, his voice breaking.
Italy's ambassador to Switzerland, Gian Lorenzo Cornado, told Sky TG24 that local authorities had told him the fire was started by someone letting off a firework inside the bar.
He was in Crans-Montana, where he said a number of Italians had gathered seeking information about missing relatives or friends.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Witnesses described injured people being treated in improvised triage centres set up in a nearby bar and in a branch of UBS bank and said many suffered after coming out of the heat of the bar into the freezing night air.
"And then it was just ambulances coming back and forth as much as possible," said Dominic Dubois, who witnessed the frantic scenes as the bodies were brought out.
Video footage showed lines of ambulances queuing and helicopters landing to take victims to nearby hospitals and specialist burns units in other Swiss cities, including Lausanne and Zurich.
Switzerland's neighbouring countries - France, Germany and Italy - also offered to treat victims in their own centres.
Watch: Video shows ambulances queuing and helicopters landing to take victims to hospital
This morning, footage from the street outside showed the area cordoned off, with forensic tents behind white screens set up in front of the bar.
The quiet daylight scene, in which small groups of people huddled together, some in tears, some carrying flowers, was a stark contrast to the panic and confusion that confronted first responders hours earlier.
"The first responders - the firefighters and police officers - arrived at a scene of chaos, at a dramatic scene," Stephane Ganzer, head of security for Valais canton, told reporters.
Hundreds of people paid their respects to the victims at the top of the road in front of the scene this evening. Dozens left flowers or lit candles on a makeshift altar in front of the police cordon as a large crowd stood in silence in the frosty night.
Crans-Montana is due to host next year's Alpine World Ski Championships.
"What was meant to be a moment of joy turned, on the first day of the year in Crans-Montana, into mourning that touches the entire country and far beyond," Mr Parmelin said on the social media platform X.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Foreign Affairs has said that at this stage, her department is not aware of any Irish citizens directly impacted by the fire.
In a post on social media, Helen McEntee said that the Irish embassy in Switzerland is monitoring the situation and will provide consular assistance when required.
She said that any Irish citizen in need of consular assistance can contact the embassy on +41(0)313500380 or +353(0)14082000.
