Minors up to 16 years old, including those missing after the explosion in a bar on New Year’s Day

Swiss police worked this Friday to identify the victims of the fire and subsequent explosion at the Le Constellation bar in the Crans-Montana ski resort in Switzerland.

Authorities warn the process could take days or weeks. French and Italians are missing among them Giovanni, 16 years oldfrom Bologna. Around 40 people died in the New Year’s Eve fire and another 115 were injured. In a Geneva hospital, a doctor reported that patients, some only 15 years old, are in treatment severe burns.

Swiss authorities described the tragedy as “Frightening proportions.”

On the streets downtown, some families with children in ski suits prepared for a day of snow Friday. But in the few cafes that open early in the morning, The tragedy was felt in every conversation.

Calls to search for missing people are increasing on social networks.

This was said by the Attorney General of the canton of Valais in southwestern Switzerland, Béatrice Pilloud have mobilized important resources “to identify the victims and return their bodies.” pass it on to the families as quickly as possible.

“This work can take several days,” said the head of the cantonal police, Frédéric Gisler.

In addition to the fatalities, authorities count 115 injured, including at least 115 80 are in critical conditionMathias Reynard, President of the Valais regional government, told the Walliser Bote newspaper.

The fire broke out in the direction 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, January 1st in the bar Le Constellation in Crans-Montana, a place frequented by tourists, many of them youngwho celebrated the New Year.

It is not known how many people were in this two-story bar, one of them underground, with a capacity of 10,000 m² at least 300 peopleaccording to their website.

“We tried to contact our friends. We posted a lot of photos on Instagram, Facebook and all kinds of social networks to try to find them,” said Eléonore, 17 years old.

“But nothing, no response, we called the parents, nothing, Not even the parents know anything” he continued.

“The atmosphere is tense,” Dejan Bajic, a 56-year-old tourist from Geneva who has been coming to this ski resort since 1974, told AFP. “It’s like a small town, i.eWe all know someone who knows someone affected“.

On the street in front of the bar, several people came to lay flowers.

The witness statements from various media agree on the possible cause of the accident. some torches attached to bottles touched the ceiling and caused the fire. According to witness statements This was common practice in the establishment.

The fire caused “a widespread fire that caused one or more explosions” in the bar, said the cantonal authorities, who immediately ruled out the hypothesis of an attack. The investigation is ongoing.

Despite the fire, there were no black marks on the walls of the buildings adjacent to the bar on Friday. Even the bar sign appeared to be intact, as was the wooden structure of the patio, a sign of that The fire was mainly concentrated in the basement.

Witnesses described horrific scenes of people trying to break windows to escape while others, covered in burns, rushed into the street.

A video on social media shows the roof fire breaking out, with a young man trying to put out the fire with a large white cloth. Other young people at his side They take in the scene but continue dancing.

Swiss President Guy Parmelin, who took office on Thursday, announced the flags will wave in the middle for five days after this “tragedy of frightening and unprecedented proportions.”

The authorities assume so many foreigners among the victims, However, they have not yet revealed any information about their identities.

The injured were transferred to various hospitals in Lausanne, Geneva and Zurich and even to neighboring France and Italy.

According to the French Foreign Ministry, nine French people are among the injured, while another eight have not yet been located.

For his part, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who will travel to Crans-Montana on Friday, said: ““Fifteen Italians” were injured and that many others are still missing.

The Crans-Montana Congress Center has installed a crisis cell to accommodate and care for families.

Consistent sources told AFP on Thursday that the owners of the bar You are of French nationalitya couple originally from Corsica. According to a close friend, they were unhurt, but they remain untraceable.