'Agonising' Families wait for information about the missing

The group of 15 young people had travelled from Milan to Crans-Montana, some of them crossing the border by car, others by train, to celebrate New Year's Eve.

- Angela Giuffrida

The Swiss ski resort was well known to them since they had spent summers here with their families, and a big draw was marking the new year in the bar that in recent years had become known as the place to be.

Eight from the group managed to escape the inferno that ripped through Le Constellation, killing about 40 people, while three are among the 80 critically injured.

Marco, 20, and Gabriele, 18, had planned to join their friends in the venue shortly after midnight but by a last-minute twist of fate decided not to. Now they are searching for the four among them who were still missing as of yesterday evening, including Achille Barosi and Chiara Costanzo, both 16. "Sometimes that is how destiny plays out," said Gabriele at the scene. "It is devastating."

Another Italian who was not with them, Emanuele Galeppini, a 17-year-old international golfer who lived in Dubai, was the first of the 40 victims to be identified publicly. A British-educated teenager, Charlotte Niddam, believed to be 15, was also reported missing.

Officials said identifying the dead and also the injured could take days owing to their burns.