What should have been a loud, glittering welcome to the New Year in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana ended in silence, smoke, and loss.
Forty people died when fire tore through the basement bar Le Constellation in the early hours of January 1.
More than a hundred others were badly burned.
Now, for the first time in depth, the bar’s owners have spoken about what happened inside—and about the young waitress they considered part of their own family.
“She Was Like Our Own Child”
Jacques and Jessica Moretti described Cyane Panine not as an employee, but as someone woven into their lives.
She was the girlfriend of a close family friend, a young woman they said they had helped raise. To them, she was “like a stepdaughter.”
Her final moments, they believe, reflect the full terror of that night.
Cyane suffocated behind a locked service door, trapped beneath what Jacques Moretti described as a “pile of bodies.”
By the time he reached her, it was already too late.
Building the Buzz Before Midnight
Jessica Moretti arrived at the bar—known casually as “the Constel”—around 10.30pm on New Year’s Eve. At first, she said, the place was quiet.
Then people began drifting in, group by group, until just under a hundred customers packed the basement venue.
Trying to lift the mood, Jessica encouraged Cyane to help energize the room.
Part of that atmosphere involved a familiar party trick: sparklers placed in champagne bottles, delivered to tables that had paid hundreds of pounds for a New Year’s celebration.
Some waitresses, faces covered with masks, were even lifted onto the shoulders of male staff as they carried the sparklers through the crowd, their flames brushing dangerously close to the ceiling.
Fire in the Ceiling
Investigators believe the sparklers ignited soundproofing foam above the dance floor.
Once the fire took hold, it spread rapidly. Thick smoke filled the basement within moments.
Jessica Moretti recalled seeing an orange glow in the corner of the bar and feeling a sudden surge of people pushing past her.
She shouted for everyone to get out. Then she ran upstairs to alert security and call the fire brigade.
At 1.28am, she dialed Switzerland’s emergency number.
A Door That Wouldn’t Open
While chaos unfolded inside, Jacques Moretti raced to the bar from another restaurant the couple owns nearby.
When he reached the patio behind Le Constellation, windows were open and people were spilling out, coughing and collapsing.
He tried to get back inside but couldn’t—the smoke was too dense.
That’s when he noticed the service door. It wasn’t an emergency exit, and it wasn’t supposed to be locked.
But that night, it was bolted shut from the inside with a latch.
He forced it open within seconds.
Inside, bodies were scattered across the floor, many unconscious. Among them was Cyane.
Fighting for Cyane’s Life
Jacques Moretti and Cyane’s boyfriend dragged her outside and laid her on the ground.
For over an hour, they tried desperately to revive her on the street near the bar.
Emergency crews eventually told them there was nothing more to be done.
Cyane, a French national like the Morettis, died within the hour.
“She Spent Christmas With Us”
Jessica Moretti was questioned separately by prosecutors.
She told them Cyane had been like a little sister.
The young woman had just spent Christmas with their family.
Losing her, Jessica said, left her shattered.
After escaping the fire, Jessica drove herself home
. She later told investigators she was in shock, panicking, barely able to function.
Jacques said he told his wife—who had only a minor arm injury—to leave the scene and go home to their children.
“I wanted to protect her,” he said. “I didn’t want her to witness this tragedy.”
Cash Register Controversy
Authorities have not commented on allegations that security cameras captured Jessica leaving the bar with the night’s cash takings.
Reports suggest she could face further accusations, including failing to assist people in danger.
The Morettis have not publicly addressed those claims.
A Venue With Serious Gaps
The couple explained they first rented Le Constellation in 2015 and renovated it completely, including replacing the ceiling foam.
Over ten years, fire inspectors visited two or three times and never demanded changes, according to Jacques.
Still, he admitted there were no sprinklers and no fire extinguishers on site.
Staff received no fire safety training. Champagne sparklers, he said, were used regularly for birthdays and celebrations and had never caused problems before.
He insisted the sparklers burned for less than a minute and were always extinguished in water afterward.
In his view, they were not powerful enough to ignite the ceiling foam—suggesting something else must have contributed to the blaze.
“It Wasn’t Routine, But It Happened Before”
Jessica acknowledged that lifting staff with sparklers close to the ceiling had happened before, though not often.
She said she neither ordered nor stopped the practice.
“I never forced them,” she told investigators. “But I never stopped them either.”
Teenagers Among the Dead
Many of the victims were teenagers, including a 14-year-old boy from France.
Questions have since emerged about underage patrons being allowed inside.
Jacques Moretti said the bar banned anyone under 16 and required those aged 16 to 18 to be accompanied by an adult.
He admitted, however, that rules may not have been properly enforced that night.
Charges and Backgrounds
The Morettis, originally from Corsica, are under investigation for negligent manslaughter, negligent bodily harm, and negligent arson.
They deny all criminal and civil responsibility.
Jacques Moretti remains in custody. Jessica has been released on bail and is wearing an electronic bracelet.
Jacques has a criminal past that includes prison sentences; Jessica is said to have no prior record.
A Family’s Anger and Grief
Cyane Panine was laid to rest in her hometown of Sète in southern France.
Her mother, Astrid Panine, said Cyane knew the venue well and immediately headed for the emergency exit.
“She could have saved herself,” she said.
“She could have saved others. But the door was locked.”
An Investigation Far From Over
As prosecutors continue to piece together what went wrong inside Le Constellation, one truth remains painfully clear: a night meant for celebration ended with lives lost, families broken, and questions that refuse to fade.
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