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Survivors of the devastating bar fire in the upmarket Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana are being cared for in special burns units in various European nations, while authorities report many of the dead were so badly burned that identification could take an extended period.

A Calamity of Unprecedented Proportions

About 40 people were lost their lives and 115 hurt when the blaze engulfed a New Year’s Eve celebration in the crowded Constellation bar and basement nightclub.

“The first objective is to put names to all the bodies,” stated local official Nicolas Féraud.

The Swiss president, Guy Parmelin, called the fire “a calamity of unprecedented, horrifying proportions” as he described the devastating toll. “Beyond these numbers are individuals, names, families, lives tragically ended, forever altered or for ever changed,” Parmelin remarked at a news conference.

Challenging Task of Naming Victims

So severe were the victims’ burns that Swiss officials said the process of identification was particularly gruelling. Families of missing youths issued pleas for news of their loved ones and diplomatic missions worked urgently to find out if their nationals were among those involved in one of the worst tragedies to strike modern Switzerland.

A regional leader, the head of government of the canton of Valais, said forensic specialists were using dental charts and DNA samples for the task. “All this work needs to be done because the information is so terrible and delicate that nothing can be told to the families unless we are 100% sure,” he explained.

Overwhelmed Medical Systems

Despite having one of the world’s most advanced medical systems, 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.

Many more of the injured were flown to other countries including Belgium, France and Germany, while the EU confirmed it had been in contact with Swiss authorities about providing medical assistance.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, said he had offered his country’s help as clinics in Paris and Lyon took in patients, while Sweden and North Macedonia also said they had hospital beds available.

International Victims

Italy and France are among the countries that have said a number of their citizens are unaccounted for and Italy’s diplomatic representative to Switzerland said the Italian foreign minister would visit Crans-Montana.

Swiss officials have said about 40 people were killed but a foreign government has put the fatality count at 47, based on early data.

A regional health and safety official expressed surprise on Friday he was “surprised” 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. Several Italians are still missing and more than a dozen hospitalised. Some victims were repatriated on Thursday with more to follow.

The French foreign ministry said several nationals were among the injured and eight others remained unaccounted for. Australia has said one of its nationals was injured.

Desperate Search for Loved Ones

Loved ones have been scrambling to find their loved ones, using online platforms to circulate photos of those unaccounted for.

Paulo Martins, a French citizen resident in the area for 24 years, said his son and his girlfriend just avoided being in the bar at the time of the fire. “When he came home he was really in shock,” Martins said.

A friend of his 17-year-old son had been evacuated for treatment in Germany with his body 30% covered in burns, Martins added.

Eleonore, 17, started the year with a desperate hunt for friends who have been missing since the fire. Standing outside the bar, now covered by white tarpaulins and a barrier of temporary fencing, she said she had not heard from them since New Year’s Eve.

“We took loads of photos [and] we put them on Instagram, Facebook, every social network possible to try to find them,” she said. “But there’s no news. No response. We called the parents. No information. Even the parents haven't heard anything.”

She and a friend later received news that one friend was in a medically induced unconsciousness in a hospital in Lausanne.

Long Road to Recovery

The director of the city’s teaching hospital, Claire Charmet, said it was treating 22 severely injured patients, most ranging in age from 16 to 26.

“Patients are being medically stabilized and transferred to the operating theatre or to specialised beds,” she told a local newspaper. “We need to be aware that the medical care will be protracted and demanding, lasting many weeks or even months.”