Web Desk/AFP

CRANS-MONTANA: Several dozen people are presumed dead and around 100 injured after a fire ripped through a crowded bar in the luxury Swiss ski resort town of Crans-Montana, police said early Thursday. Police, firefighters and rescuers rushed to the popular resort, one of the top-ranked ski destinations in Europe, after the fire broke out in the early hours of New Year&#39;s Day. A tourist from New York filmed bright orange flames pouring from the bar, and told AFP he saw people running and screaming in the dark. Authorities said they were still investigating the causes of the fire which erupted at around 1:30 am local time at the Le Constellation bar, but said they did not believe it had been caused by an &quot;attack&quot;. &quot;Several dozen people are presumed to have died,&quot; Frederic Gisler, police commander in the Wallis canton in southwestern Switzerland, told reporters, adding that around 100 people had been injured, many of them seriously. &quot;As I speak to you, all the injured are being treated,&quot; he said. The hospitals in Wallis were full and had declared a state of emergency, with the injured being transported to various hospitals across Switzerland. The Le Constellation has a capacity of 300 people and another 40 people on its terrace, according to the Crans-Montana website. Earlier, a police spokesman told AFP some 100 people had gathered there for New Year celebrations. Ambulances were still parked outside the bar hours later, and broken windows could be seen. Local media described a &quot;smell of burning still in the air&quot;. &#39;Stunned&#39; Authorities said it was too early to provide an exact number of casualties, but said that since Crans-Montana is popular with tourists around the world, they expected them to include a number of nationalities. At least two French citizens were among the injured, according to initial reports from the French foreign ministry. Swiss media suggested that the fire may have started when pyrotechnics were used during a concert. Police said the area was &quot;completely closed to the public&quot;, and that &quot;a no-fly zone over Crans-Montana has been imposed&quot;. &quot;The party was in full swing... music and champagne flowing freely,&quot; a resident who said they lived nearby told 24 heures, a Lausanne newspaper. But as news of the fire broke, they said, the carefree mood vanished and people began gathering in the street. &quot;We could hear the sirens in the distance. Around me, people were stunned, worried, silent.&quot; &quot;We heard helicopters all night long,&quot; another neighbor told 24 heures. &quot;With the fireworks, we didn&#39;t understand what was going on at first. Then we saw the smoke. It&#39;s terrible, a lot of young people go to that bar.&quot; Pakistan offers condolences Pakistan&rsquo;s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his condolences in the wake of the deadly fire. In a statement on X (formerly Twitter), PM Sharif extended his sympathy to the victims and their families, as well as to the Swiss government. <div class="fr-embed"><div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 345px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2006677928663462347&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F3181%2F&sessionId=39d873ebafca6722b5c8971fe3fb53e3aa991228&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" data-tweet-id="2006677928663462347"></iframe></div></div></div> &ldquo;Deeply saddened to learn of the tragic fire incident at a ski resort in Switzerland on New Year&rsquo;s night. Our hearts go out to those who lost their lives, and we pray for the swift recovery of the injured. We stand in solidarity with the Swiss government and the people of Switzerland during this difficult time,&rdquo; he said.

Europe

A fire broke out at the Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, injuring many, with authorities still investigating the cause.

'Several dozen' believed killed in Swiss ski resort fire, Pakistan PM offers condolences

PARIS:&nbsp;Revelers around the world toasted the start of 2026 on Thursday, bidding farewell to a volatile year when temperatures soared, US President Donald Trump upended global trade, and the brutal conflict in Ukraine raged on. While a fragile truce took hold in devastated Gaza, violence in Sudan continued unabated.&nbsp; A new American pope was installed at the Vatican, the world lost pioneering zoologist Jane Goodall, and Labubu dolls sparked a worldwide frenzy. In Sydney, partygoers paused for a minute of silence to remember the victims of the mass shooting on Bondi Beach before fireworks lit up the skies at the stroke of midnight. Heavily armed police patrolled the shoreline, packed with hundreds of thousands of people, barely two weeks after 15 people were gunned down at a Jewish festival in Australia&#39;s deadliest mass shooting for almost 30 years. Bathed in white lightThe famed Sydney Harbour Bridge was bathed in white light to symbolize peace. Pacific nations, including Kiribati and New Zealand, were the first to see in 2026, with Seoul and Tokyo following Sydney in celebrations that spread around the globe with each passing hour. In Hong Kong, a major New Year fireworks display was cancelled&nbsp;in homage to 161 people killed in a fire in November that engulfed several apartment blocks. &lsquo;10 percent&rsquo; awayUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country was &ldquo;10 percent&rdquo; away from a deal to end the fighting, which soon reached the four-year mark. Russia&rsquo;s Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, used his traditional New Year address to urge his compatriots to believe that Moscow would deliver a victory in Europe&#39;s deadliest conflict since World War II. In the Ukrainian city of Vyshhorod, beauty salon manager Daria Lushchyk said the war had made her work &ldquo;hell&rdquo; but that her clients were still showing up. &ldquo;Nothing can stop our Ukrainian girls from coming in and getting themselves glam,&rdquo; Lushchyk said. <h2 style="line-height: 2;">Tariff blitz and fragile truce&nbsp;</h2>This year has brought a mix of stress and excitement for many, war for others still -- and a daring jewel heist at the Louvre. Pop megastar Taylor Swift got engaged to her American football player boyfriend, Travis Kelce, and K-pop heartthrobs BTS made their long-awaited return. Trump returned as US president in January, launching a tariff blitz that sent global trade and world stock markets into meltdown. As he prepared to host a New Year&#39;s party at his lavish Florida home, the Republican president launched a broadside at Oscar-winning actor George Clooney. After two years of war that left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins, pressure from Trump helped land a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October -- though both sides have accused each other of flagrant violations. &ldquo;We bid farewell to 2025 with deep sorrow and grief,&rdquo; said Gaza City resident Shireen Al-Kayali. &ldquo;We lost a lot of people and our possessions. We lived a difficult and harsh life, displaced from one city to another, under bombardment and in terror.&rdquo; Optimism in Syria&nbsp;In contrast, there was optimism despite abiding internal challenges in Syria, where residents of the capital Damascus celebrated a whole year since the fall of Bashar al-Assad. &ldquo;There is no fear, the people are happy, all of Syria is one and united, and God willing &hellip; it will be a good year for the people and the wise leadership,&rdquo; marketing manager Sahar al-Said, 33, told AFP as bells rang in Damascus. Fireworks in DubaiIn Dubai, thousands of revelers queued for up to nine hours for a spectacular fireworks and laser display at the Burj Khalifa, the world&rsquo;s tallest building. Revelers popped champagne near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Bulgaria adopted the euro, and huge crowds danced at Edinburgh&#39;s Hogmanay street party. More than 2.5 million people were expected to pack Rio de Janeiro&#39;s Copacabana Beach for what authorities have called the world&rsquo;s biggest New Year&#39;s Eve party. Crowds packed the city&#39;s expansive coastline for concerts and fireworks, mostly dressed in white, a tradition related to Iemanja, the goddess of the sea in Afro-Brazilian faiths. In the US capital, the Washington Monument was lit up to kick off America&#39;s 250th birthday celebration year. And in New York, thousands gathered in freezing temperatures amid tight security for the traditional ball drop in Times Square. <h2 style="line-height: 2;">Sports, space and AI &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>The coming 12 months promise to be full of sports, space, and questions over artificial intelligence. Athletes will gather in Italy in February for the Winter Olympics. And for a few weeks in June and July, 48 nations will compete in the biggest football World Cup in history in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. NASA is planning a crewed mission to orbit the Moon during a 10-day flight, more than 50 years after the last Apollo lunar mission. And after years of unbridled enthusiasm, AI is facing scrutiny, and nervous investors are questioning whether the boom might now resemble a market bubble.

Middle East

Australasia

Americas

The coming 12 months promise to be full of sports, space, and questions over AI; in February, athletes will take part in the Winter Olympics, and in June and July, 48 nations will compete in the football World Cup.

Articles tagged with "New Year's Eve 2026"

'Several dozen' believed killed in Swiss ski resort fire, Pakistan PM offers condolences

World welcomes 2026 with fireworks after year of Trump and turmoil