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At the least six people have been killed and three others taken to the hospital with severe injuries after a person ‘set himself on fire’ in a town west of the Swiss capital.
Police spokesperson Frederic Papaux said a ‘voluntary act’ might be the explanation for the inferno on Tuesday evening within the town of Kerzers, about 15 miles west of Bern.
The regional transport bus is operated by PostBus, which is affiliated with the national postal service.
Images from the scene on Swiss media showed flames tearing through the bus.
An eyewitness told local media in Albanian: ‘A person set himself on fire inside. He poured gasoline and set himself on fire!’
‘After rushing to the scene, rescue teams noted that the vehicle was totally engulfed in flames,’ the regional government said in a press release.
Ambulance and helicopter teams ferried three injured individuals with severe injuries to the hospital, while two others were treated on site, police said.
Mr Papaux said an investigation was underway, and refused to say if the incident was terror-related.
The bus was travelling from Düdingen to Kerzers, and burst into flames before the ultimate stop, in keeping with local media.
Swiss President Guy Parmelin wrote on X: ‘It distresses and saddens me that yet more people in Switzerland have lost their lives in a serious fire.
‘The background is being clarified. To the relatives of the deceased from Kerzers, I extend my condolences. And I feel of the injured and the emergency services.’
On Latest 12 months’s Eve, 41 people died in an inferno on the Constellation within the ski resort of Crans-Montana.
The bar owners are facing trial for ‘manslaughter by negligence, causing injury by negligence, and causing arson by negligence’ in relation to the 41 deaths, and the severe burning of 115 others.
Around 200 people, including minors, were contained in the nightclub on the time, in keeping with Swiss news outlet Blick.
Witnesses have claimed the hearth occurred after a waitress put candles on top of champagne bottles, certainly one of which was then held as much as the ‘wood’ ceiling.
Crans-Montana is a well-liked destination within the Alps, particularly amongst British skiers, known for its views of the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc.
Le Constellation, sometimes called the Constellation Bar, has been open since 2015. It will possibly accommodate as much as 300 people and an extra 40 in its lounge.
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