
Imagine ringing in the New Year amid the snowy peaks of the Swiss Alps, only for celebrations to erupt into a deadly inferno that claimed young lives in seconds. A crammed basement bar full of New Year's revellers flipped into a hellish trap of fire and frenzy, gutting families and pushing investigators into overdrive.
The fire ripped through the exclusive Le Constellation nightclub in Crans-Montana around 1:30am on Thursday, killing at least 40 and injuring 119. Early leads now point to sparklers on champagne bottles as the likely trigger. 'We assume that the fire originated from sparklers attached to champagne bottles. From there, the ceiling caught fire,' said Beatrice Pilloud, attorney general for the Valais region.