Hundreds of people silently filed through the frosty streets of the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana on Sunday to remember victims of a New Year bar fire that killed at least 40 people and injured more than a hundred others.

Following a packed church mass that spilled outdoors, the crowd slowly walked towards an impromptu shrine next to the "Le Constellation" bar that went up in flames in the early hours of January 1.

"It's to be together with the people who ⁠are suffering, who have lost somebody in the family, children or friends," said 76-year-old Charlotte Schumacher, a participant in the procession. "I know people who have lost their grandchildren."

Teenagers as young as 14 or 15 years old were among the dead, and the severity of the burns suffered by the victims has made the process of identifying them difficult.

Prosecutors said the fire was likely caused by sparkling candles igniting the ceiling of its basement. Swiss authorities have put the two people who ran the bar under investigation on suspicion of crimes including homicide by negligence. (Reuters)