BILD reconstructs the events of that night based on emergency services reports and witness statements.
21:30: The New Year's Eve party has started at “Le Constellation”. A table cost up to 1,000 Swiss francs (about 1,080 euros), and only guests with red armbands were allowed to enter.
22:15: Bar owner Jessica Moretti arrived at the scene.
“We had time to kiss”
Midnight: “We had time for kisses and New Year's wishes,” recalls waitress Louise L. “We served a few drinks, but there weren't many people there,” she adds.
1:10: Two groups order champagne and vodka. Louise L.: “The guy asked us to deliver the bottles ten to fifteen minutes later.”
When did the New Year's Eve party start?
How many people died as a result of the fire?
What was the bar owner doing before the fire broke out?
What actions did guests take when they noticed the fire?
1:15: Jessica Moretti hurriedly asks Cyane and Camille C. for help serving. “She told Cyane that 16 bottles of alcohol needed to be delivered. They were understaffed.” Women descend the narrow stairs. Waitress Louise is sent to the office to get masks.
1:15 — 1:26: At Jessica's command, a team carrying bottles with fireworks attached to them sets off. Cyane sits on Mathieu's shoulders. At the guests' request, the DJ plays “AWA” by the French rapper Lacrime.
1:26:52: Waitress Cyane leads a group of six people through the bar carrying ten bottles of fireworks. Bar owner Jessica Moretti closes the procession, holding a bottle of champagne. With his other hand, he films the sparkler event. “I didn't notice the fire; I didn't see it until later on the videos,” Louise testified.
A man tries to extinguish the fire with a sweater
1:27:02: The guests notice the fire, but initially do not take it seriously. Sélim B. (30): “When I saw it, I had to laugh. I thought: 'These idiots set this place on fire.'”
1:27:23: A young man tries to put out the fire with a sweater, but only blows out the flames. Louise: “It's clear from the footage that the fire started after we left with the bottles. I thought we were all going to die there and I screamed, 'everything's going to explode!'”
Fire in the bar
1:27:50: Customers try to escape down the narrow stairs. Jessica Moretti escapes with just a few scratches on her hand.
1:28:12: A sudden burst of fire engulfs the bar from the basement to the porch: “That's what happens when smoke or gas ignites,” says police officer Steven L. Camille. “There was thick smoke and a huge crowd at the entrance. Then there was a sudden explosion.”
1:28: Emergency call from Jessica Moretti.
1:32: The first patrol from the mobile unit is alerted. “When we arrived there was complete chaos,” reports Inspector Bénédict Z.
1:38: Firefighters arrive at the bar. There are no flames visible, but there is a lot of smoke coming from the upper floors. Louise L. gives water to the wounded at the 1900 bar across the street. “I will never forget that smell,” he says.
4:14: A hotline for families is launched.
5:08: The evacuation of the wounded using ten helicopters was completed.
