🔗 Share this article Crans-Montana Blaze Survivors Are Treated 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 special burns units in various European nations, while investigators say many of the dead were so badly burned that naming the victims could take an extended period. A Calamity of Unprecedented Proportions Approximately 40 people were killed and 115 hurt when the inferno engulfed a New Year’s Eve celebration in the crowded Constellation bar and underground club. “The first objective is to assign names to all the bodies,” said local official Nicolas Féraud. The Swiss president, Guy Parmelin, called the fire “a disaster of unprecedented, terrifying proportions” as he described the heavy human cost. “Beyond these numbers are faces, names, families, lives brutally cut short, completely interrupted or irrevocably damaged,” Parmelin said at a press briefing. Gruelling Identification Process Such was the severity were the victims’ burns that Swiss officials said identification work was particularly gruelling. Families of missing youths issued pleas for news of their loved ones and diplomatic missions scrambled to determine if their citizens 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 experts were using dental charts and DNA samples for the task. “All this work needs to be done because the information is so distressing and sensitive that nothing 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 local hospitals quickly reached capacity in the hours after the blaze. More than 30 people were taken to hospitals with dedicated burn centers 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, stated online he had offered his country’s assistance as clinics in Paris and Lyon took in patients, while Sweden and North Macedonia also said they had hospital beds available. A Multinational Tragedy 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 travel to Crans-Montana. Swiss officials have said about 40 people were killed but another nation has put the fatality count at 47, based on preliminary information. A regional health and safety official expressed surprise on Friday he was “surprised” by the higher number. “This is not the same number that we have,” he told a radio station. 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 hospitalised. Some victims were returned home on Thursday with more to follow. The French foreign ministry said nine French citizens were among the injured and eight others remained missing. Australia has said one of its nationals was hurt. Families in Anguish Relatives and friends have been scrambling to find their loved ones, 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 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 shielded by white tarpaulins and a barrier of temporary barriers, she said she had not heard from 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 said. “But there’s no news. No response. We called the parents. Nothing. Even the parents don’t know.” She and a friend later received news that one friend was in a coma in a hospital in Lausanne. Treatment Will Be Lengthy The director of the city’s university hospital, Claire Charmet, said it was treating 22 badly burned patients, most ranging in age from 16 to 26. “Patients are being medically stabilized and moved to the operating theatre or to intensive care units,” she told a local newspaper. “We need to be aware that the medical care will be protracted and demanding, lasting several weeks or even many months.”