Swiss gondola malfunction turns deadly
June 5, 2019
One person died while carrying out maintenance work on a cable car in Switzerland, police confirmed on Wednesday. Six more workers were injured. They were hit by two cables after a temporary brace for the ski lift failed at an altitude of some 1,300 meters (4,265 feet).
The funicular connects the village of Engelberg to a lake at the Swiss mountain of Titlis. The cable car was out of commission when the accident took place. No tourists were injured, according to a police spokesman cited by the Swiss mass-circulation paper Blick.
Police and rescue workers were deployed to the tourist resort, located 35 kilometers (22 miles) south of Lucerne.
Authorities did not provide details on the number of injured or on their condition. The Swiss helicopter ambulance service, Rega, flew four helicopters to the scene, according to local media.
The gondola was out of use when the accident took place, according to Titlis cable railway official Peter Reinle.
Police said forensic experts from Zurich would look into the causes of the incident.
dj/rt (dpa, Reuters, AP)
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