Swiss Ski resort fire

[Natasha Tori Maru]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/01/several-dead-and-injured-in-explosion-swiss-ski-resort-town-crans-montana-police-say

Man this is horrible. If I read correctly, one exit?

This reminds me of the horrific station nightclub fire. 

[Asayake]

Apparently the fire spreads very fast like this and people didn't realize the danger so in less than a minute the fire likely went from small and harmless looking to turning the entire basement into an oven and the one way out turned into a chimney. Horrible way to die..

[meta_male]

Heartbreaking. I was there two weeks ago. Crans-Montana was a big part of my childhood, this hits close.

Only one door for a couple hundred people.

Edited Friday at 09:26 PM by meta_male

[Natasha Tori Maru]

9 hours ago, Asayake said:

Apparently the fire spreads very fast like this and people didn't realize the danger so in less than a minute the fire likely went from small and harmless looking to turning the entire basement into an oven and the one way out turned into a chimney. Horrible way to die..

My ex is a fireman and he really put the fear in me with the shit he has seen. Horrifying stories.

A lot of older buildings have very odd exemptions from standard fire codes. The difference in building surveyors sighoffs for handover of a project for a new build as opposed to a refit/extension can be eye opening. But modern design is very very diligent with fire safety. Contractors cheaping out and corruption are the parts I am wary of. Sprinkler systems, EWIS & detectors have strict standards immediately apparent and have multiple 3rd parties sign off on them. But a GC can purchase cheap, flammable materials and just lie on paperwork to the surveyor for handover, submitting datasheets and statements they used qualifying materials...

As standard whenever I enter a new building I always look for exits and clear paths - and I pay attention to the way doors open. I naturally do this sort of scanning from working in construction and always sort of ... scoping and comparing quality of builds  Gotta check out the competitions standards!

I have been accused of being paranoid - but safety guidelines are written in blood.

Station nightclub fire was similarly horrific to the OP. A reporter happened to be filming there that night. Some horrifying footage out there of people on fire running from the building with the liquid flammable soundproofing all over them. I think it was less than 90seconds before the building was in flames - if i recall correctly. 100 people died that night.

 

 

Edited yesterday at 02:26 AM by Natasha Tori Maru

[Ulax]

Jesus

[Ulax]

10 hours ago, Asayake said:

Apparently the fire spreads very fast like this and people didn't realize the danger so in less than a minute the fire likely went from small and harmless looking to turning the entire basement into an oven and the one way out turned into a chimney. Horrible way to die..

Well, did not realise fires could do that

[cetus]

Night club fire history: The Coconut Grove in 1942.  Air conditioning was first being introduced. A big deal at that time with advertising signs stating, "Air Conditioned". But! The ac system used a flammable gas. A leak in the system plus flammable decor and cigarettes ended in total tragedy. Bodies piled up at the only exit. Part of the problem was also due to the exit doors swung inwards not outwards.

[Natasha Tori Maru]

6 hours ago, cetus said:

Part of the problem was also due to the exit doors swung inwards not outwards.

This can be a huge point of resistance to owners of buildings - it costs a lot to rehang and change the swing of a door. More than you would expect.

And it seems like a very minor thing. But if it is an egress route it will 100% be a necessity and FRV will always assess and have a building surveyor add it to their qualifying sign offs. That's in Australia though. 

It was a big lesson for me on a recent D&C project because my design got knocked back twice, but they didn't provide a reason (the Building Surveyor, that is) and it wasn't until I spoke to FRV they told me. One reason I dislike old-school authority - they will say no without educating me on the reason. Expecting me to blindly follow.

But that could also be my issue - as I have always disliked and pushed back on authority myself 😈

[cetus]

@Natasha Tori Maru in the US we have the B.O.C.A, code book or "Blue Book" as it is known as. It does give brief explanations of why a code is written the way it is.

In fact, just yesterday morning I had to check the blue book for the requirements for tempered safety glass. Any glass lower then 18 in. (45.72 cm) from the floor must be Tempered.

Edited 15 hours ago by cetus

[Opulence]

That's terrible. 

[meta_male]

4 hours ago, Natasha Tori Maru said:

This can be a huge point of resistance to owners of buildings - it costs a lot to rehang and change the swing of a door. More than you would expect.

In Switzerland emergency exits must open outward. This place had no emergency exit, only one main entrance door, which opened inward.

The enfprcement of regulations is a cantonal responsibility, and unfortunately Crans-Montana is in Wallis, a canton known for putting more emphasis on personal responsibility than on strict regulations. The place should have never been given a license by authorities in the first place...