'Living a Nightmare': Families Desperate for News

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...The fire in Crans-Montana was likely caused by sparklers placed on bottles of champagne that came "too close to the ceiling", Swiss officials told a news conference on Friday.

An investigation into the fire will focus on the materials used at the site, the bar's fire safety measures, its capacity and the number of people inside at the time, Valais Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud said.

Swiss authorities have said it could take days if not weeks to identify the victims of the fire, which killed 40 people and injured another 119. Officials said 113 of the injured had been identified, with authorities still working to identify the other six.

In the meantime, families and friends have been taking to social media to appeal for information about their loved ones who were at the bar that night. ...

@#2

In a minor aspect, I do not disagree.

I mean, sparklers in champagne bottles?

Who could have ever known that might not result in a good ending?

Sparklers on champagne bottles likely cause of deadly Swiss bar fire
www.bbc.com

... A fire at a bar in a Swiss ski resort appears to have been caused by sparklers placed on bottles of champagne that came "too close to the ceiling", authorities said.

Forty people died after the blaze in the early hours of New Year's Day in Crans-Montana, while 119 were injured.

Valais Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud told a news conference on Friday the investigation would focus on the materials used on the site, the bar's fire safety measures, its capacity and the number of people inside at the time of the fire. ...

"Everything leads us to think that the fire started from sparkling candles - or sparklers - which were put on bottles of champagne [that were] moved too close to the ceiling. From that, a blaze began very quickly", Ms Pilloud told the conference.

One of the bar's owners reportedly told local media the establishment had been inspected three times in the past ten years and that everything had been done according to the regulations. ...

My main question ...

OK, sparklers may have set the ceiling on fire.

Why does it seem that those who may have noticed that fire not have been able to leave the premises.

And as a follow-up question, were there fire-suppression sprinklers? Did they work?