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Those who escaped of the catastrophic nightclub blaze in the upmarket Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana are receiving treatment in specialized trauma centers across Europe, while investigators say many of the deceased were so severely injured that identification could take days or weeks.

A Calamity of Unprecedented Proportions

About 40 people were lost their lives and 115 injured when the inferno ripped through a New Year’s Eve celebration in the crowded Constellation bar and basement nightclub.

“Our primary goal is to assign names to all the bodies,” stated Crans-Montana’s mayor Nicolas Féraud.

The Swiss president, Guy Parmelin, called the fire “a calamity of unparalleled, horrifying proportions” as he outlined the devastating toll. “Behind these figures are faces, names, families, lives tragically ended, completely interrupted or irrevocably damaged,” Parmelin remarked at a news conference.

Gruelling Identification Process

So severe were the victims’ burns that Swiss officials said identification work was exceptionally difficult. Families of unaccounted-for young people issued pleas for news of their family members and foreign embassies scrambled to find out if their citizens were among those involved in one of the worst disasters to strike the country in recent memory.

A regional leader, the head of government of the canton of Valais, said experts were using dental charts and DNA samples for the task. “All this work needs to be done because the information is so distressing and sensitive that no detail can be told to the families unless we are completely certain,” he said.

Overwhelmed Medical Systems

Despite having one of the world’s most advanced medical systems, Switzerland’s local hospitals quickly became overwhelmed in the hours after the fire. More than 30 people were taken to hospitals with dedicated burn centers in Zurich and Lausanne and six were flown to Geneva, according to news agencies.

A significant number of the injured were flown to other countries including Belgium, France and Germany, while the EU said it had been in contact with Swiss authorities about offering support.

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, said he had offered his country’s assistance as clinics in Paris and Lyon admitted victims, while Sweden and North Macedonia also said they had hospital beds available.

A Multinational Tragedy

Italy and France are among the countries that have said a number of their citizens are unaccounted for and Italy’s diplomatic representative to Switzerland said the Italian foreign minister would travel to Crans-Montana.

Swiss officials have said approximately 40 people were killed but another nation has put the death toll at 47, based on preliminary information.

A regional health and safety official said on Friday he was “surprised” by the latter figure. “This is not the same number that we have,” he told a media outlet.

The Italian ambassador said all but five of the injured had now been identified. A number of Italians are still missing and more than a dozen receiving treatment. Some victims were returned home on Thursday with more to follow.

The French foreign ministry said several nationals were among the injured and additional individuals remained missing. Australia has said one of its nationals was injured.

Families in Anguish

Relatives and friends have been working desperately to find their loved ones, using online platforms to circulate photos of those unaccounted for.

Paulo Martins, a French citizen resident in the area for 24 years, said his son and his girlfriend narrowly missed being in the bar at the time of the fire. “When he came home he was deeply traumatized,” Martins told reporters.

A friend of his 17-year-old son had been evacuated for treatment in Germany with severe burns covering a third of his body, Martins stated.

Eleonore, 17, started the year with a frantic search for friends who have been unheard from since the fire. Standing outside the bar, now covered by white tarpaulins and a barrier of temporary fencing, she said she had not heard from them since New Year’s Eve.

“We took loads of photos [and] we put them on Instagram, Facebook, all possible platforms to try to find them,” she said. “But there’s no news. No response. We called the parents. Nothing. Even the parents don’t know.”

She and a friend later received news that one friend was in a coma in a hospital in Lausanne.

Long Road to Recovery

The director of the city’s teaching hospital, Claire Charmet, said it was treating 22 badly burned patients, most ranging in age from 16 to 26.

“Patients are being stabilised and moved to the surgery or to intensive care units,” she told a local newspaper. “We need to be aware that the medical care will be long and intense, lasting several weeks or even months.”