Swiss officials admit bar inspection lapses

CRANS-MONTANA:

Swiss authorities admitted Tuesday that fire safety inspections had not been carried out for the past five years at a bar where 40 people died in a New Year blaze.

The bar owners, who are facing negligent manslaughter charges, meanwhile said they were "overwhelmed with grief", and would not seek to "evade" their responsibilities.

The inferno at Le Constellation in the Alpine ski resort of Crans-Montana in Switzerland's southwestern Wallis region left 116 people wounded, of whom 83 are still in various hospitals. Most of those killed were teenagers.

Prosecutors believe the fire started when people celebrating the New Year raised champagne bottles with sparklers attached, setting light to sound insulation foam on the ceiling in the bar's basement section.

Although inspections including fire safety were conducted in 2016, 2018 and 2019, "periodic inspections were not conducted between 2020 and 2025. We bitterly regret this," Crans-Montana mayor Nicolas Feraud told a press conference.

Relatives of the victims received the news "with dismay", Romain Jordan, a lawyer representing several families, told AFP.

And "we would have liked to hear an apology", he added.

By law, the municipal fire department should conduct annual inspections in establishments open to the public, Feraud said.

"The courts will determine the influence that such a failure had in the chain of events leading up to the tragedy. The municipality will assume full responsibility as determined by the courts," the municipality said in a statement.

French couple Jacques and Jessica Moretti owned and managed Le Constellation, which was filled with young partygoers when the blaze erupted at around 1:30 am on Thursday.