Spanish
The fire and safety measures of the bar in Crans Montana, in Switzerland, which burned down on New Year's Eve causing 40 deaths and 116 injuries, had not been verified since 2019, the mayor of the town acknowledged today for the first time, who has indicated that investigations will determine how this influenced the tragedy.
Mayor Nicolas Féraud assured at the same time that his entity will assume the responsibilities that justice establishes, even at a criminal level.
In a press conference, Féroud said several times that he has no explanation for the fact that for more than five years "Le Constellation" has not been subject to any inspection and assured that this was learned when reviewing the documents submitted to the Public Ministry as part of the investigation.
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"We deeply regret it. Justice will determine the influence this breach had on the chain of causality that has led to this drama, and we will assume all the responsibility that justice determines," he declared. For the moment, the Public Ministry of the canton of Valais (jurisdiction to which Crans Montana belongs) has opened a criminal investigation against the French couple who managed the bar "Le Constellation", but has not ordered pre-trial detention against them, considering that there is no evidence that they intend to escape the country to evade the action of justice. This fire is considered one of the most serious tragedies of the last decades in Switzerland and has caused a deep emotional impact among the youth due to the circumstances in which it occurred. Party attendees celebrated the arrival of 2026 by dancing, singing, and placing sparklers in bottles that got too close to the ceiling covered by acoustic foam, which began to burn and caused a widespread and very sudden fire, according to a fire department official. To soundproof an establishment, there are mainly two types of foam, one of which is fire-retardant, that is to say, it does not spread fire and is more expensive than the other, which lacks that property. The investigations will confirm if it was that last type of foam that had been used in the ill-fated bar. Regarding this, the mayor of Crans Montana has pointed out that the law does not require that the materials used be examined in safety inspections in public establishments - carried out by municipal services. The municipality of Cran Montana has constituted itself as a civil plaintiff in the criminal investigation opened against the managers of the nightclub, a decision that has been questioned by lawyers of victims' families due to the eventual criminal liability that their own employees could have. As immediate measures, Féroud indicated that the use of any type of pyrotechnic device inside public establishments is prohibited. He also said that an external specialized company has been hired to control the 128 public establishments in Crans Montana, an alpine town with high tourist appeal throughout the year, mainly for its skiing offer in winter and golf during spring and summer. Crans Montana has about 11,000 permanent residents, in addition to the 15,000 people who have a second home and, according to figures from the Tourist Office, receives about three million visitors a year, mostly in winter.
