A minute’s silence for the victims of Crans-Montana
Keystone-SDA
At 2pm, Switzerland paused for a minute’s silence dedicated to the victims of the New Year’s Eve fire in Crans-Montana in which 40 people died and 116 were injured. The moment of silence took place on a national day of mourning.
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The minute’s silence was accompanied by bells ringing throughout the country. In this way, the government wished to express its thoughts to the victims, the injured and their loved ones, but also to the rescuers.
There were also shows of solidarity at the local level. In Bern, public transport stopped at 2pm for 20 seconds, activating the emergency flashers as a sign of remembrance. In several schools in Switzerland, the subject of the tragedy will then be dealt with.
The Swiss Federal Railways also took part in the commemoration, with flags at half-mast in the stations and announcements calling for a minute’s silence, also at 2pm.
Skyguide, responsible for controlling Swiss airspace, did not allow any take-offs from the airports of Geneva, Zurich and Payerne at the same time, a spokeswoman told the Swiss News Agency Keystone-ATS.
+ Crans-Montana tragedy: ‘Our hearts go out to you’, say Swiss Abroad
In Bern, the federal administration buildings have flags at half-mast, as is the case in many other parts of Switzerland.
Adapted from Italian by AI/ts
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