Image source, Reuters

After several rounds of questions from reporters, authorities in Switzerland have brought the press conference to an end - here is a recap of what they said:

• Around 40 people have died and 115 injured, "many severely" after the fire at Le Constellation bar overnight, the police commander said
• There are 60 people being treated at a hospital in Sion, and others have been taken to hospitals in other Swiss cities
• Two officials - including the attorney general - said they don't know how many people were in the bar at the time, but it's something the investigation into the fire will be covering
• A state councillor described it as having a "young festive population" during the New Year's Eve party, but would not describe any of the victims as minors
• Swiss President Guy Parmelin called the incident "one of the worst tragedies that our country has experienced"

Pilloud is also asked about the number of people inside Le Constellation bar when the fire took hold.

She says she doesn't know the bar's capacity, but that this will be part of the investigation.

The attorney general echoes what Feraud said moments earlier, that officials don't know how many people were in the bar when the fire began.

A few more questions on the timeline of events follow, before the press conference comes to a close. We'll bring you a summary of what we've just heard shortly.

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud tells the press conference that she is "not able to give a timeline" for the first results of the investigation into the fire.

She says there are teams working to bring answers "as quickly as possible".

Asked if they know roughly how many people were in the bar at the time of the fire, municipality president of Crans-Montana Nicolas Féraud says "not at all".

He says there are regulations covering this, and that the security services have an annual schedule to visit and check venues to ensure that they are complying with health and safety regulations.

In response to another question, Ganzer reasserts comments from officials earlier today that the incident was not an attack.

He says the fire produced a "conflagration" - which is defined as a large fire that causes a lot of damage - rather than it being an explosion.

One journalist asks the panel if minors were among those killed in the fire.

State councillor Stéphane Ganzer replies says he's not going to describe the victims as minors, but adds: "You can imagine on New Year's Eve that the population is quite young.

"We're talking about a young festive population."

Swiss President Guy Parmelin says the identification of the victims needs to be sorted as soon as possible, but stresses the task is "extremely difficult work" and "is something that will last a long time".

The panel is now taking questions from the media in the room.

The first asks Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud to respond to rumours that bottles of champagne carrying flares might have been the cause of the blaze.

She is also asked whether the owners of Le Constellation bar are French, and is questioned on whether the staircases were "very narrow".

• For context: Some witnesses think "birthday candles", on top of a champagne bottle, set fire to the ceiling, and warned evacuation from the bar was "very difficult" due to narrow exit routes

The attorney general replies that she cannot confirm anything while the investigation is ongoing.

She says she doesn't know about the nationality of the bar's owners, can't say what constitutes a narrow staircase, and the investigation will determine whether safety standards were met or not.

Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly said the attorney general had seen that the staircase was narrow. This was a result of an error in the live broadcast translation of the press conference and the post has since been amended.

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

Regional governor Mathias Reynard gives updated numbers on the amount of emergency resources deployed to the fire - including 42 ambulances, 13 helicopters and 3 "disaster trucks".

"A significant number" of the injured were identified as being in a "critical category", he says.

There are 60 people receiving care at Sion hospital and some have been taken to hospitals in other Swiss cities, he says, adding that other countries - including France, Germany and Italy - have offered to treat patients with severe burns.

Medical services are under a lot of pressure he says, and asks the public to "be careful" and to "not clutter hospitals" by avoiding seeking care there if you can.

Gisler says he expects several foreign nationals to be among the victims.

He adds that officials are in contact with the families of the victims and keeping them updated in real time.

Gisler hands over to Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud, who says officials will be looking into the source of the fire, but warns: "The work will take time."

She says that "several hypotheses" for the cause of the blaze have been put forward, and the favoured theory for now is a "general fire which caused conflagration".

The attorney general says many witnesses have been interviewed and adds that telephones which were found will be analysed.

The forensic institute in Zurich has already been given a mandate to carry out an investigation to determine the cause of the fire, she says.

Image source, Reuters

"Around 40 people" have died and 115 are injured, "many severely", police commander Frédéric Gisler tells the press conference.

The priority over the coming days is to identify the people who have died "so that their bodies can be returned rapidly" to their families, he says.

Reynard continues, praising the work of everyone who mobilised to help with the emergency response - including people at the scene who "did not hesitate" to provide help.

In these dramatic circumstances, he says, "our teams gave everything".

The authorities are carrying out investigations into "the exact circumstances" of this incident, Parmelin says.

"We owe it to victims", their families and all Swiss citizens, he says.

He adds that flags will be flown at half mast for five days. A "tragedy of such a scale" must not happen again, he says.

Parmelin then passes to Mathias Reynard, the head of the regional government.

Reynard says "several dozen people" have died following the fire, information we heard from officials earlier.

The authorities are still waiting for information, he adds, saying that he is aware the wait is "unbearable" but that identifications of the injured and those killed is going to "take time".

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

Parmelin thanks countries that have offered support in the wake of the fire - pointing specifically to neighbouring France, Germany and Italy.

He says communications are being established via foreign ministries with the families of foreign victims.

Switzerland's Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud begins by setting out how the press conference will proceed this afternoon - and who we'll hear from - before handing over to Swiss President Guy Parmelin.

He calls last night's fire "one of the worst tragedies that our country has experienced".

Parmelin continues, calling it a "drama of an unknown scale", adding that many lives have been lost and roughly one hundred people have been injured - some severely.

The Swiss president says those lives have been "interrupted or damaged" forever, and adds that no words can reflect the "brutal loss" of life - offering his condolences to the victims and their families.

Swiss authorities are set to give another press conference about last night's fire in Crans-Montana shortly.

Switzerland's President Guy Parmelin is expected to be joined by Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud and the president of the Crans-Montana municipality among others.

We'll bring you all the key updates here, and you can watch live by tapping the button at the top of the page.

Image source, AFP

• Warning: This post contains distressing details

One man tells the news agency AFP he was trapped in the burning building and had to break a window to escape.

"We were trapped, a lot of people were trapped. We couldn’t see because of the smoke," says Axel Clavier. "We didn’t know how we were going to get out."

He continues: "I was alone and didn’t know how I could do it, but I managed to break a window and get out through the window.

"Half of my clothes were gone, it was crazy.

"I was in the basement. Me and my friends were having fun, unfortunately some of our friends are no longer with us because of the fire.

"It was crazy. People were trapped. I had to put a table up to hide behind it, trapped by the blaze. But I got out. That’s the main thing."

On the moments before the fire started, he says there were waitresses in the bar "with champagne bottles with flares too close to the ceiling", and that the "fire took hold suddenly".

• For context: Authorities have not said how the fire started. Other eyewitnesses have said they think "birthday candles", placed on top of a champagne bottle, set fire to the ceiling

Flowers and handwritten notes are starting to be laid on the street near the bar. We are expecting to get an update from authorities later in the same area.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, EPA

Image source, Getty Images

The Italian Foreign Ministry tells the BBC 16 Italian nationals are currently missing following the fire at Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana.

A spokesperson for the ministry says between 12 and 15 others have been located in hospital and are currently receiving treatment.

Three of them have suffered "severe burns" and will be transported to Italy shortly, they add.

Image source, Reuters

• Warning: This post contains distressing details

Eyewitness Dominic Dubois tells news agency Reuters that a nearby bar provided warmth on a cold night, with the curtains being used to help keep people warm.

"There's the Bar 1900, that was the first kind of responding place. They did amazing to stay open. It was warm in there, that was what was needed," he says.

A local UBS bank branch opened too, he adds: "We pushed all the tables, all the tables were pushed aside and people entered and it was warm in there, there was more light as well, so the triage was down there."

Dubois says there were "many gory scenes" there, adding: "There were many who were very strong, who stayed strong and who understood that their life was in grave danger, but decided that mentally it was more important to stay calm."

He says many people helped "carrying bodies out of the fire".

Imogen Foulkes
Reporting from Geneva

The Swiss authorities are expected to give another press conference about the fire in Crans-Montana at 17:15 local time (16:15 GMT).

Switzerland’s President, Guy Parmelin, is expected to attend. Earlier he cancelled his traditional New Year’s Day message.

Image source, Reuters

We've been hearing from a number of people who witnessed the fire at Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana. Here's what we've heard so far:

• French nationals Emma and Albane, who were inside the bar, say "in a matter of seconds, the entire ceiling was ablaze" and that evacuating was "very difficult" due to narrow exit routes. They believe a birthday candle held too close to the ceiling may have contributed to starting the fire
• A witness tells the BBC he saw "shocking" and "disturbing" scenes after breaking into the burning building to try and help people inside. He says he'd initially ran in fearing his brother might've been inside
• An Italian man says bodyguards went downstairs to assess the situation but immediately doubled back when they saw the flames. One of his friends remains missing following the fire, he adds

• Oleh Paska, who's been staying at a hotel close to the bar, says he and his family initially thought explosions they heard were part of "ordinary celebrations" - but emergency sirens quickly revealed something horrible had happened

• At the nearby Sion hospital, a woman describes the chaotic scenes she saw outside the emergency room, as the first injured began to arrive for treatment