By Olivia Le Poidevin
GENEVA, Jan 7 (Reuters) – Soundproofing foam that caught fire in a bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana at New Year, killing 40 people, should have been subject to regular safety checks by law, a senior official said, contradicting the town’s mayor.
Investigators suspect the blaze at “Le Constellation” bar broke out when revellers held up sparkling candles too close to soundproofing foam on the basement ceiling.
On Tuesday, Crans-Montana Mayor Nicolas Feraud said the bar had not been subjected to any annual safety inspections since 2019, even though it should have been every year.
But Feraud said the law did not mandate safety checks of the soundproofing material itself. Courts will determine if this should have been done regardless, he said.
Stephane Ganzer, head of security in the canton (county) of Valais where Crans-Montana is located, told Swiss media RTS that existing regulations clearly required a list of checks, including materials such as soundproofing foam.
“The checklists are very clear, and obviously, checking materials – especially foam like this – is part of the basic inspection carried out in an establishment,” he said.
He cited an ordinance supplementing the law, as well as standards of the Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects.
His remarks add to the debate over who was responsible for the condition of the bar when the fire broke out.
Ganzer said such failings should not happen in Switzerland, long renowned for its image of affluent law and order, stability and precision.
“The standards are precise, the legal basis is strict,” he said, “and if everything had been properly respected, we would not have 40 deaths at the end.”
(Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin; editing by Mark Heinrich)
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