Swiss regions ban pyrotechnics after ski bar fire

The Swiss canton of Valais has banned pyrotechnic devices in all indoor public venues following the devastating fire at a bar on New Year’s Eve where 40 people were killed and 116 were injured.

Authorities said each of the victims would get a 10,000 franc ($12,500; £9,200) emergency payment, with a fund being set up to collect donations.

The canton of Geneva also announced a ban on pyrotechnics in indoor venues – days after Vaud became the first of Switzerland’s 26 regions to take such a decision.

The blaze at Le Constellation bar in the ski resort of Crans-Montana is believed to have started when sparklers attached to champagne bottles set light to sound-insulating foam padding on the ceiling.

EPA

The community in Crans-Montana remains in shock two weeks after the fire

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Jacques and Jessica Moretti, French owners of Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, say they are co-operating with the investigation

Authorities have acknowledged that the bar had not undergone safety checks for five years.

The two co-owners of Le Constallation, French couple Jacques and Jessica Moretti, have been accused of manslaughter by negligence, bodily harm by negligence and arson by negligence.

Jacques Moretti is being held in custody for an initial period of 90 days. His wife has had to surrender her passport and report to police every day.

The news that the bar had not been inspected for five years has shocked families of the victims, most of whom were young – eight were under the age of 16.

Many of the injured have severe burns. Eighty remain in hospitals in Switzerland and other European countries.

One of the lawyers representing families of the victims said on Tuesday that an online platform had been launched to receive testimonies related to the disaster.

“This initiative aims to facilitate the investigation for the benefit of the victims,” Romain Jordan said – not to replace the official investigation.

Among those who have died was the waitress who was seen in a video wearing a helmet and holding a champagne bottle with a sparkler attached and the ceiling catching fire.

Identified widely as Cyane Panine, 24, and from Sète in south-east France, she is said to have been close to the managers of the bar.

Her family have issued a statement saying: “Whatever the outcome of the investigation, this young woman followed her employers’ instructions. She did what the general manager asked her to do. Nothing unusual. This young employee is in no way responsible.”