Footage has captured the chilling moment screams rang out as survivors fled from a Swiss ski resort nightclub inferno.
Around 40 people are feared dead and 100 others injured after an explosion at a luxury ski resort in Switzerland during New Year’s Eve celebrations.
The deadly blast occurred at around 1.30am local time (12.30am GMT) in the Constellation Bar, located in the centre of the Alpine town of Crans-Montana.
A clip shared on social media by a tourist from New York showed bright orange flames pouring from the bar, as dozens of people sprinted away from the blaze.
The piercing sound of yelling and screaming can be heard in the footage as the survivors dashed away from the fire in the darkness of the n ight.
A woman who witnessed the blaze start said fire broke out when a waiter, dancing on a colleague’s shoulders, held a sparkler too close to the ceiling.
Foreign tourists are among the victims, according to local officials.
Images published by local media show a building engulfed in flames and emergency services nearby.
The blast occurred at around 1.30am local time (12.30am GMT) in the Constellation Bar in Crans-Montana as revellers celebrated the New Year
Inside the Constellation Bar following the blaze
Swiss daily Blick cited a doctor at the scene suggesting that the death toll could be in the ‘dozens’, while daily Le Nouvelliste said its sources were describing ‘a heavy toll’, with ‘around 40 dead and 100 injured’.
A survivor of the blaze told French news channel BFM: ‘During the evening, a waiter climbed onto another waiter’s shoulders.
‘He was holding a birthday candle, which was very close to the ceiling, and [the ceiling] caught fire in a couple of minutes.’
Another women said: ‘The staircase leading out of the nightclub was extremely narrow. There was a huge surge in the crowd. We managed to escape just in time.’
Police commander Frédéric Gisler confirmed the fire ‘started in the basement of the bar’ and there was a crush as people desperately tried to get out via the single staircase.
Another witness, Emma, said the fire seemed to start after people celebrated with champagne bottles that contained candles.
‘Some of the bottles were near the ceiling and it caught fire. The whole ceiling was in flames and the fire spread really fast. It happened in seconds. We ran outside, screaming and crying,’ she told BFM.
Other reports suggest the blast may have been caused by fireworks – however police say this is yet to be confirmed.
A witness added that ‘countless’ ambulances and several helicopters raced to the scene.
‘There has been an explosion of unknown origin,’ Gaetan Lathion, a police spokesman in Wallis canton in southwestern Switzerland said.
Rescuers and fire-fighters work at the site of an explosion that ripped through a bar in Crans-Montana on January 1, 2026
Around 100 people had gathered at the bar, which has a capacity of up to 300 and another 40 on its small terrace.
A doctor in the Swiss air ambulance and rescue service said hospitals are ‘overwhelmed with burn victims’ in comments made to local media.
‘Several people lost their lives and others were injured,’ a police statement said, describing the incident as ‘serious’ and adding that ‘a major emergency response is underway’.
‘A large contingent of police, firefighters, and rescue workers immediately went to the scene to assist the numerous victims,’ it said.
‘The operation is still ongoing.’
Crans-Montana is a luxury ski resort town located in the heart of the Swiss Alps.
It is approximately two hours from the Swiss capital of Bern and is popular with British tourists.
Police said a no-fly zone is in place over the resort and the area remains completely cordoned off.
‘The party was in full swing… music and champagne flowing freely,’ a resident who said they lived nearby told 24 heures, a Lausanne newspaper.
But as news of the fire broke, they said, the carefree mood vanished and people began gathering in the street.
‘We could hear the sirens in the distance. Around me, people were stunned, worried, silent.’
‘We heard helicopters all night long,’ another neighbour told 24 heures.
‘With the fireworks, we didn’t understand what was going on at first. Then we saw the smoke. It’s terrible, a lot of young people go to that bar.’
The UK embassy in Berne said it has not been approached yet for assistance, but said that ‘nationals from multiple countries’ are likely impacted.
‘Swiss emergency services are responding to a fire in Crans-Montana, with nationals from multiple countries likely affected. We continue to monitor the situation,’ it wrote on X.
‘Whilst we have not been approached for assistance, our staff stand ready to support British nationals abroad 24/7.’
