# Several dozen dead in bar fire in Switzerland **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Tags:** breaking-news\ **Created:** [January 1, 2026, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237 "2026-01-01T11:28:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/1 "2026-01-01T11:28:25Z")
[‘Several’ dozen killed in blaze in Swiss resort bar on New Year’s Day, police say - ABC News](https://abcnews.go.com/International/dead-fire-bar-switzerland-new-years-day-police/story?id=128825726) Bar fire on New Years Day. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/2 "2026-01-01T11:41:24Z")
That’s an awful high death toll for a fire in a bar, unless they were trapped somehow or the place was highly unsafe. We’ll have to wait for the investigation to find out, but I suspect some kind of illegality will be discovered. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/3 "2026-01-01T12:14:41Z")
I’m reading that the fire started in the basement, and that fireworks may have been involved. The media here is referring to it as an explosion rather than just a fire. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/4 "2026-01-01T12:25:03Z")
From the BBC: > In the past hour, we had a major update from Swiss authorities about the fire in the Crans-Montana bar: > > - “Several dozen” people are presumed dead, with at least 100 injured > > - The victims are of several different nationalities, and work to identify them is ongoing > > - Most of the injured have “significant” injuries with severe burns > > - Some 10 helicopters, 40 ambulances and 150 responders were sent to the scene > > - The emergency operation will continue into the coming days > > - Valais hospital’s intensive care unit is now full, with patients being sent elsewhere for specialist burns treatment > > - Officials warned people to take extra care and not add unnecessary pressure to hospitals > > - No cause of the fire was mentioned - but the prosecutor ruled out an attack ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/5 "2026-01-01T14:17:48Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I’m reading that the fire started in the basement, and that fireworks may have been involved. Probably wasn’t the Aurora Borealis. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats2)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/6 "2026-01-01T14:45:28Z")
“Failure of pyrotechnic display equipment” is what I read as being suspected. I guess people didn’t learn from the Great White tragedy. . ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/7 "2026-01-01T15:15:34Z")
CNN reported something about people walking around with sparklers in Champagne bottles as a possible cause of the fire. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/8 "2026-01-01T15:30:41Z")
Tragic, RIP to those that lost their lives. “Some stupid with a flare gun burned the place to the ground…” ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/9 "2026-01-01T16:00:27Z")
Maybe, but evacuating drunk people fast is really difficult; they don’t listen or understand danger and do stupid stuff. It also sounds like ‘bar’ is a poor description; there was a basement nightclub as well as an upstairs bar area. It may be that there weren’t enough exits from there, but I’d wait until a full report comes out before assuming that. There were hundreds of people in there, many of whom were in the basement, speaking a range of different languages, so there’s more possibility for misunderstanding and confusion in a fast-moving situation (‘Did he just yell fireworks, go outside? Ahh, I’m not bothered, it’ll be cold and I just got a drink’). The BBC reports that -aside from some sparklers- there were no pyrotechnics around, but a [flashover](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashover) occurred in the bar. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/10 "2026-01-01T16:28:43Z")
“World remains neutral.” _ducks and runs_ ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/11 "2026-01-01T16:55:41Z")
“Dozens of dead.” Certainly the right time for humor. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/12 "2026-01-01T16:56:42Z")
Not here and not now, please. ---
**Author:** ![LouMa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/louma/32/19472_2.png) [@LouMa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouMa)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/13 "2026-01-01T17:03:33Z")
But not for bad taste. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/14 "2026-01-01T17:12:04Z")
This sounds absolutely horrifying. My thoughts are with the family members who have lost a loved one. May the victims rest in peace. ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/15 "2026-01-01T17:23:11Z")
A press conference (noon EST) reports 40 dead and 150 injured - some in critical condition. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/16 "2026-01-01T17:41:40Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > The BBC reports that -aside from some sparklers- there were no pyrotechnics around, but a [flashover](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flashover) occurred in the bar. Flashover is a terrifying phenomenon. Lots of people could have died in seconds. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/17 "2026-01-01T18:09:52Z")
See this photo: [![](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRW1gWRZ_klvpYbzKAGOujiN32o_S4Lw8XMa5A77G2OjvraF5L7NefOurw&s=10/) ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRW1gWRZ_klvpYbzKAGOujiN32o_S4Lw8XMa5A77G2OjvraF5L7NefOurw&s=10/) Look at the ceiling. Apparently dark gray acoustic foam–perhaps the same type of highly flammable stuff as used in the Station, Rhode Island fire. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/18 "2026-01-01T18:20:16Z")
> [@carrps](#): > > Flashover is a terrifying phenomenon. Lots of people could have died in seconds. Fires kill much faster than people realize. I blame movies, wherein the hero can go in and out of a fire, which seems to burn the place down really slowly and without much smoke, for people’s misapprehension of how indoor fires work. In fact they will burn out the inside of a room or building AMAZINGLY fast, and witnesses reporting it as an explosion are quite understandable. It really could seem like an explosion, they can happen so quickly. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/19 "2026-01-01T18:46:14Z")
Urf. My thoughts are with the burned people in serious and critical condition. Burning damage is one of the most painful things that can injure you, and even people who survive often have horrible permanent injuries. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2026, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237/20 "2026-01-01T19:28:25Z")
Here are the kind of sparklers the regularly used there (but not from the night of the fire) [https://www.youtube.com/shorts/OCgRHRpe6OA/](https://www.youtube.com/shorts/OCgRHRpe6OA/)\> [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/several-dozen-dead-in-bar-fire-in-switzerland/1026237.md?page=2)