LONDON – “Several” dozen people are presumed dead and about 100 more injured early on New Year’s Day when a fire ripped through a popular bar in a tourist town in the Swiss Alps, police said.
A fire of “undetermined origin” broke out in the Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana around 01:30 local time, the Valais cantonal police said in a statement.
Rescuers are seen at the site of an explosion that leveled a bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, on January 1, 2026.
Maxime Schmid/AFP via Getty Images
Investigators were working Thursday to determine the cause of the fire, authorities said during a morning news conference. The incident is not being investigated as an attack, they added.
Rescuers and firefighters work at the site of an explosion that leveled a bar in Crans-Montana on January 1, 2026.
Maxime Schmid/AFP via Getty Images
“A large contingent of police, firefighters and rescue personnel immediately rushed to the scene to assist the numerous victims,” police said in their earlier statement.
Authorities described the emergency response as “significant” and added that the area near the Alpine bar had been closed to the public.
Police officers walk at the scene of a fire that destroyed a bar in Crans-Montana, in the canton of Valais, Switzerland, on January 1, 2026.
Maxime Schmid/AFP via Getty Images
A no-fly zone was established over Crans-Montana, police said in their statement. The resort town is popular with skiers and is located in the Sierre district of southern Switzerland in the canton of Valais.
Police have not released the identities of those who died in the fire. Authorities said Thursday that it was likely, given the area’s popularity among travelers, that some of the dead were tourists who had traveled to the Alpine city to celebrate New Year’s Eve.
