Swiss bar blaze suspicions fall on sparklers waved by staff

Moments before flames and smoke engulfed the bar in Switzerland where 40 people died, staff were seen holding aloft sparklers stuck in Champagne bottles, videos posted online showed.

The mini-fireworks were being waved near the basement bar's low wooden ceiling, covered in thin soundproofing fabric, according to the images on social media.

One video showed the ceiling catching alight and the flames spreading quickly -- but revellers initially continuing to dance, unaware of the death trap they were in.

A young man is seen attempting to extinguish the flames with a large white cloth.

Authorities investigating the deadly blaze said they suspected that "sparklers or Bengal candles" sparked the fire.

Witness accounts later relayed to various media said the sparkler parade was a regular "show" for patrons in the bar, which typically drew a young crowd.

The flames spread with terrifying speed in the bar, in the Swiss luxury ski resort town Crans-Montana, which was packed with New Year's Eve partygoers.

The video which showed the ceiling catching fire went to on capture a scene of panic: people scrambling and screaming in the dark as smoke and flames around them grew bigger.

- 'Explosion' -

Elliot Alvarez, a local who had been at a next-door bar with friends, told AFP: "We received a call from a friend who was clearly panicked on the phone and explained that there had apparently been an explosion."

When he and his friends arrived at the scene, they found the place crawling with emergency responders and "people on the ground being treated, people coming out, burned".

Police commander Frederic Gisler told reporters that "the red alarm, which mobilises the fire department, was triggered" immediately when authorities were alerted to the situation.

Passers-by shortly, before 1:30 am (0030 GMT) on Thursday, had seen smoke coming out of the centrally located bar and called the emergency services.

Less than a minute later, at 1:32 am, the first police patrols arrived on the scene. Firefighters and other emergency workers also rushing in.

At that time, inside the bar, flames had engulfed the basement. Smoke was everywhere, also filling the first floor, according to videos.

Outside, bystanders could see flames, later describing scenes of chaos as people tried to break the windows to escape and others, covered in burns, poured into the street.

Young patrons in the bar, disoriented by the smoke and panic, tried to escape through the front door, causing a crush at the exit.

- 'Crying for help' -

Nathan, who had been in the bar before the blaze, saw burned people streaming out of the site.

"They were asking for help, crying out for help," he said.

Adrien, a young vacationer from Dijon, France, described on TikTok how he "saw people breaking windows with chairs".

"They were in a terrible state, covered in blood, their clothes melted ... It was a catastrophe."

Leandre, who was outside, told the Blick newspaper of the "very sad" scene, with "people burned beyond recognition".

"We tried to rescue them as best we could ... tried to cover them, because they had no clothes left," he said.

"It was really difficult. We tried to pull people out who were conscious, people who were unconscious, and get them to a warm place."

He said that even the rescue workers "were overwhelmed", because everything happened so quickly, with "people who were burned alive".

- 'White sheet' -

Edmond Cocquyt, a Belgian tourist, told AFP he saw bodies "covered with a white sheet" and "young people, totally burned, who were still alive ... screaming in pain".

After emergency units at local hospitals filled, many of the injured were transported across Switzerland, and beyond.

Outside a Milan hospital, Umberto Marcucci told reporters he was "thanking the heavens" that his son Manfredi -- one of four Italians being treated at the hospital -- made it out alive.

"My son is sick but he's fine, he's alive," he said. Manfredi, he said, had been at Le Constellation with many friends and escaped with "burns on 30 to 40 percent of his body".

"He told me that at a certain point, someone yelled 'fire' in the bar area... and from there the fire spread incredibly quickly."