🔗 Share this article Swiss Ski Resort Blaze Victims Receive Care in Burns Units Across Europe Those who escaped of the devastating bar fire in the luxury Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana are being cared for in specialized trauma centers in various European nations, while authorities say many of the dead were so severely injured that identification could take an extended period. A Calamity of Unprecedented Proportions About 40 people were killed and 115 injured when the blaze engulfed a New Year’s Eve celebration in the crowded Constellation bar and basement nightclub. “The first objective is to assign names to all the bodies,” said Crans-Montana’s mayor Nicolas Féraud. The Swiss president, Guy Parmelin, called the fire “a disaster of unparalleled, horrifying proportions” as he described the devastating toll. “Behind these figures are individuals, names, families, lives brutally cut short, forever altered or irrevocably damaged,” Parmelin remarked at a press briefing. Gruelling Identification Process So severe were the victims’ burns that Swiss officials said the process of identification was particularly gruelling. Families of unaccounted-for young people issued pleas for news of their loved ones and diplomatic missions scrambled to find out if their nationals were among those involved in one of the worst tragedies to strike modern Switzerland. Mathias Reynard, the head of government of the canton of Valais, said experts were using dental charts and DNA samples for the solemn duty. “All this work needs to be done because the findings is so distressing and sensitive that no detail can be told to the families unless we are completely certain,” he said. Overwhelmed Medical Systems Even with one of the world’s most sophisticated healthcare networks, Switzerland’s regional clinics quickly became overwhelmed in the hours after the blaze. Over 30 people were taken to hospitals with specialised burns units in Zurich and Lausanne and six were flown to Geneva, according to news agencies. A significant number of the injured were flown to other countries including Belgium, France and Germany, while the EU said it had been in contact with Swiss authorities about offering support. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, stated online he had offered his country’s assistance as clinics in Paris and Lyon admitted victims, while Sweden and North Macedonia also said they had medical capacity available. A Multinational Tragedy Italy and France are among the countries that have said a number of their citizens are missing and Italy’s diplomatic representative to Switzerland said the Italian foreign minister would travel to Crans-Montana. Swiss officials have said approximately 40 people were killed but another nation has put the death toll at 47, based on early data. A regional health and safety official expressed surprise on Friday he was “taken aback” by the latter figure. “This is not the same number that we have,” he told a media outlet. The Italian ambassador said the majority of the injured had now been identified. A number of Italians are still missing and more than a dozen receiving treatment. Some victims were repatriated on Thursday with more to follow. The French foreign ministry said nine French citizens were among the injured and additional individuals remained missing. Australia has said a citizen was injured. Desperate Search for Loved Ones Relatives and friends have been working desperately to find their missing family members, using social media to share images of those unaccounted for. Paulo Martins, a French citizen resident in the area for 24 years, said his son and his girlfriend narrowly missed being in the bar at the time of the fire. “When he came home he was deeply traumatized,” Martins told reporters. A friend of his 17-year-old son had been evacuated for treatment in Germany with his body 30% covered in burns, Martins stated. Eleonore, 17, started the year with a desperate hunt for friends who have been unheard from since the fire. Outside the bar, now shielded by white tarpaulins and a wall of temporary fencing, she said she had not had contact with them since New Year’s Eve. “We took many pictures [and] we put them on Instagram, Facebook, all possible platforms to try to find them,” she explained. “But there’s no news. No response. We called the parents. No information. Even the parents don’t know.” She and a friend managed to get news that one friend was in a coma in a hospital in Lausanne. Long Road to Recovery The director of the city’s university hospital, Claire Charmet, said it was treating 22 severely injured patients, most ranging in age from 16 to 26. “Patients are being stabilised and transferred to the surgery or to intensive care units,” she informed a local newspaper. “We need to be aware that the treatment will be protracted and demanding, lasting several weeks or even months.”