- Fires broke out at the A9 motorway entrances in Sitten-Ost on Sunday evening.
- Seven people were temporarily arrested. They are suspected of setting off fireworks despite the ban.
The operations center of the canton police was informed at 10:20 p.m. about several outbreaks of fire near the motorway entrances, the Valais canton police wrote in a statement. The fire brigade went to the scene immediately and quickly brought the fire under control. Nobody got hurt.
Meanwhile, police officers arrested seven young adults who were staying nearby, a police spokesman said when asked by Keystone-SDA news agency. Initial police investigations revealed that one of the people arrested, a 22-year-old from Valais living in the region, was carrying several pyrotechnic objects, some of which are banned in Switzerland. He will be reported to the public prosecutor.
Another 21-year-old from Valais, who also lives in the region, is reported as having caused negligent arson and disregarding the general fire ban. In addition, in the event of a conviction, he would also have to bear the costs of using the fire brigade.
In the message, the canton police recalled the general fire ban throughout the canton. This measure also applies to the burning of pyrotechnic objects.
The Basel-Stadt fire brigade also had to put out several fires – however, there is no ban on fireworks in Basel.
On Lake Sarnen in the canton of Obwalden, two boats with fireworks on board caught fire late Monday evening, the fireworks exploded uncontrollably. As the Obwalden cantonal police wrote in a statement, one person was slightly injured.