THREE people are feared dead and at least 20 injured after a tourist-packed cable car in Lisbon derailed and smashed into a building.
The Gloria Funicular – one of the Portuguese capital’s most iconic attractions – came off its tracks at 6.05pm local time after a cable reportedly came loose.
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Local media reported that one of the two cars “fell from a great height.”
Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause, but initial reports suggest a snapped cable triggered the deadly plunge.
Emergency services raced to the scene, with police, firefighters and paramedics battling to free victims amid twisted metal and smoking wreckage.
Footage showed chaotic scenes as crowds gathered around the wreckage, with several passengers still believed to be trapped.
Witness Teresa d’Avo told TV channel SIC: “It crashed into a building with brutal force and fell apart like a cardboard box. It crashed with tremendous force. It didn’t have any kind of brakes.”
Emergency services told CNN Portugal that nine of those injured are in a serious condition.
The nationalities of the victims have not yet been released.
Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said: “The President of the Republic deeply regrets the accident that occurred this afternoon with the Gloria funicular railway in Lisbon, particularly the fatalities and serious injuries, as well as the various minor injuries.
“The President of the Republic offers his condolences and solidarity to the families affected by this tragedy and hopes that the incident will be quickly clarified by the competent authorities.”
Lisbon mayor Carlos Moedas is at the scene overseeing the rescue operation.
The Gloria Funicular, linking Praça dos Restauradores to the trendy Bairro Alto district, has ferried tourists up the steep hillside since 1885.
It is one of three of its kind in Lisbon and is well used by tourists.
It also connects the lower part of Lisbon to its Bairro Alto, more specifically Praça dos Restauradores to the Sao Pedro de Alcantara viewpoint.
The Glória funicular has come off the tracks before, though never with such devastating consequences.
On May 7, 2018, a major maintenance fault led to a derailment, but the carriage stayed upright and no one was hurt.
Service was suspended for around a month.
That incident highlighted severe shortcomings in wheel upkeep, which caused them to slip off the rails.
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