Witness saw people 'walking on top of others' as they tried to escape fire in packed Switzerland bar

A man who witnessed a bar fire in Switzerland has told Sky News he saw patrons walking over people as they tried to escape the packed venue.

This article contains details some readers may find distressing

Samuel Rapp, who was at a restaurant near Le Constellation bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana when the fire broke out, described the scene as "horrible".

About 40 people were killed in the fire, police have confirmed, and 115 others injured - the majority seriously, suffering severe burns.

Mr Rapp said he was told of an "explosion" at the venue during the early hours of New Year's Day and went to investigate.

He told Sky News: "There were a lot of people at the entry trying to escape. And it was full and people [were] walking on everybody trying to escape.

"A lot of people were screaming trying to escape and I saw a lot of people on the floor."

Follow latest: Several dozen feared dead in fire

Mr Rapp said he witnessed someone place a jacket over a victim's face and saw "a lot of people" whose hair had been burned off.

He said: "Some people were without clothes."

Asked what kind of people were at Le Constellation, he said: "Everyone in the world comes here."

He said a lot of people come from England, from the Netherlands, and from around Switzerland.

Mr Rapp added: "The people were between 16 and 18. It's horrible."

Sky News' Home Editor Jason Farrell is at the scene and said those he has spoken to have been left traumatised by the tragedy.

"It's just an absolute shock," he said, as people were gathering by the cordon closing off the area around the bar.

"There's still some waking up to this, this is a real shock to the people of Crans-Montana."

Leon Christe, who works in Crans-Montana, told Sky News he was one of the first to the scene and tried to help as many people as possible by administering first aid.

He said: "It was very chaotic and very sad.

"Everywhere, there were young people who needed help, some had their clothes burned off.

"It was very traumatising."

Authorities are yet to confirm the exact number of fatalities, although the Italian foreign ministry said Swiss authorities had reported at least 40 deaths to it.

The fire broke out at around 1.30am local time (12.30am UK time) on Thursday as people were celebrating the start of 2026.

A man speaking to BFMTV described people smashing windows to escape the blaze, some gravely injured.

Panicked parents also raced to the scene to see whether their children were trapped inside.

The man described seeing about 20 people scrambling to get out of the smoke and flames and compared what he saw to a horror movie as he watched from across the street.

Axel Clavier, a 16-year-old from Paris who survived the blaze, described "total chaos" inside the bar.

Speaking to The Associated Press, he said one of his friends had died and "two or three were missing".

The teenager didn't witness the fire start, but did see waitresses arrive with champagne bottles with sparklers.

Axel said he was suffocating and initially hid behind a table, then ran upstairs and tried to use a table to break a plexiglass window. It fell out of its casing, allowing him to escape.

He lost his jacket, shoes, phone and bank card while fleeing, but said: "I am still alive and it's just stuff."

"I'm still in shock," he added.

(c) Sky News 2026: Witness saw people 'walking on top of others' as they tried to escape fire in packed Switzerland ba