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Crans-Montana Fire Inquiry Detains Co-Owner as New Testimony Challenges Bar’s Safety Record

Fresh accounts, including a former manager’s photos, sharpen questions about renovations plus oversight before the deadly blaze.

Overview

  • A Valais court ordered three months of pre-trial detention for co-owner Jacques Moretti, while his wife remains at liberty.
  • Former manager Éric Dosdo says the basement ceiling had no acoustic foam during his tenure, the stairs were later narrowed, and six extinguishers were in place at the time.
  • An anonymous friend-witness contends Jessica Moretti first called firefighters, says Jacques helped pull people out, asserts the emergency exit was open, and maintains extinguishers were present.
  • Preliminary findings attribute ignition to sparkler candles contacting acoustic ceiling foam, with 34 of the 40 fatalities found at the foot of a narrow staircase.
  • The municipality acknowledges no safety or fire inspection of the venue since 2019, and 83 injured people remain hospitalized as the investigation continues.