Waitress thought to have started tragic Swiss bar fire confirmed among the 40 dead

Cyane Panine is believed to have accidentally started the fire which ultimately claimed the lives of 40 people during the New Year’s Eve disaster — including herself

A woman who was working as a waitress at the Swiss nightclub which caught fire on New Year’s Eve is now confirmed to have been among the dead. It is believed that she may have been responsible for the fire taking hold as she held a sparkler up to the roof, which helped to ignite the flames.

Cyane Panine, 24, is now confirmed to have been one of 40 people killed when the inferno took hold at Le Constellation nightclub on December 31. Her death had been reported earlier this month but it is now believed that she was the person responsible for the fire breaking out in the first place.

Meanwhile, the owners of the bar — Jessica and Jacques Moretti — continue to be questioned for their roles in the fire, which devastated hundreds of lives at the beginning of 2026. Further video has since shown Jessica walking away from the bar with a till full of cash as the flames began to spread rapidly on the fateful night.

According to the Sun, Cyane had been “like family” to the Morettis, who had reportedly treated her as if she was a “stepdaughter” to them. However, it is now believed that whilst under their orders, she had accidentally triggered the fire that created Switzerland’s deadliest incident in years.

Photos of Cyane on the night of the inferno showed her wearing a helmet and boasting two huge sparklers spewing out sparks to get the crowd into the festive spirit. She is later seen on the shoulders of another partygoer as she lets off sparklers again, this time close to the ceiling which then begins to catch fire.

In total, over 100 people were injured as a result of the incident in Crans-Montana — many of whom had serious burns to their bodies. Tragically, a total of 40 people were confirmed to have died in the blaze.

Local media has reported that Cyane had been instructed by Jessica to “get the atmosphere going” at the bar to welcome in the new year. Cyane’s family, speaking in a statement delivered through their lawyer said they have been left bereft at her tragic loss.

“Whatever the investigation reveals, this young woman followed her employer’s instructions,” the statement read. She did what the manager asked of her.

“This was nothing unusual. This young employee bears no responsibility whatsoever.”

The Morettis had said that Cyane was a dear part of their family, and had even spent Christmas together just days before the tragic incident. Since then, owner Jessica’s version of events has been exposed as police statements have been unearthed.

According to local station BFMTV, Jessica had told the authorities that the night had been “very quiet” to begin with. She explained that barely anyone in the area had been around at midnight to ring in the new year.

“I was just telling Cyane that we needed to bring in more people to liven things up,” she is believed to have told police. Co-owner Jacques had told officers that the business had used sparklers on bottles for over a decade without any incidents ever happening.

However, Jacques conceded that Cyane had suffered problems whilst working at the bar, having been accidentally suffocated after getting trapped behind a locked service door during a previous incident. Recalling the moment he saw Cyane’s body after the blaze, he said: “Her boyfriend and I tried to resuscitate her outside on the street for more than an hour until the paramedics told us it was too late.”

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