Forty-one people lost their lives; over 110 were injured, most of them seriously. How could such a disaster happen in Switzerland of all places? subsidiarity – and on people who take on public duties and responsibilities on a part-time or voluntary basis (militia system). A disaster like this, where more or less everything that could have gone wrong went wrong, probably could also have happened elsewhere in Switzerland. The image of Swiss reliability has also taken a hit abroad, with an increasing amount of opprobrium coming from Italy in particular. Six Italian teenagers died in the fire, and over ten of their compatriots were injured, some seriously. The Valais public prosecutors have been slammed by their southerly neighbours for their allegedly error-ridden, amateurish approach, which, critics say, includes not taking the husband-and-wife owners of the bar immediately into custody, not confiscating mobile phones, and being slow to execute a search warrant that had already been issued on New Year’s Day. Cultural breakdown Some may find this a bit rich from a country where levels of trust in the judiciary are among the lowest in Europe. Giorgia Meloni’s government has also been accused of using the tragedy to score political points at home – ahead of a March 2026 referendum on judicial reform that would broaden the executive’s influence over prosecutors and the courts – and of stoking anger to convey a specific message to Italian voters: look no further than Switzerland to see what can happen when you have an overly independent judiciary. Others have struck a softer note. Italian newspaper “La Repubblica” writes: “Not only is it a tragedy, it is cultural breakdown. An illusion shattered by brutal reality. Even the most civilised country can fail if its attention lapses.” lives ahead of them. The 41 fatalities include 20 minors, some of whom were only 14 or 15 years of age. For their families, life has been irrevocably divided into two parts: before and after the tragedy. No inspections for six years The disaster has shaken Switzerland, with a picture slowly emerging of a catastrophe that could have been avoided. Firstly, Jacques Moretti, who ran “Le Constellation” with his wife, had installed flammable soundproofing foam on the ceiling of the basement bar during renovation work in 2015. Safety officers from Crans-Montana council failed to notice anything untoward at the time – or thereafter. After 2019, the council no longer inspected the bar at all. And the canton, which has a supervisory duty, apparently did not check whether municipalities in Valais were complying with fire safety regulations. Switzerland’s cantons have since suspended this year’s plans to relax fire safety regulations, which would have reduced the frequency of inspections and given greater autonomy to venues. The Crans-Montana tragedy has shown where a more laissez-faire approach can lead. Cracks in Switzerland’s image How could there have been so many lapses in a country that puts a premium on perfection as well as adherence to the rules? Aren’t disasters like these only supposed to happen abroad? We have seen deadly nightclub fires in North Macedonia and Brazil, where the rules, if there even were any in the first place, were nonchalantly ignored. But surely not Switzerland. The brutality and tragedy of the Crans-Montana inferno are difficult to stomach as it is, but a blinkered view makes dealing with the disaster a whole lot harder. Maybe it also explains why some have been quick to point the finger at Valais, accusing the canton of lax controls and insufficient oversight. Because practically everyone knows everyone else and turns a blind eye in Valais. And then they keep quiet about it, don’t they? It is easy to forget that chumminess exists almost everywhere else in tightly knit Switzerland, where much depends on municipal autonomy, the principle of Switzerland observed a national day of mourning on 9 January 2026, with firefighters from Crans-Montana also holding a minute of silence at 2 p.m. in memory of the victims. Photo: Laurent Gillieron, Keystone Swiss Review / April 2026 / No. 2 21
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