Tangled cable vehicle lines have left scores of tourists stranded overnight, hanging above the glaciers of Mont Blanc in the Alps.
Advertisement
At least three children were among 33 people who were forced to stay inside a cable vehicle overnight after darkness and weather conditions delayed rescue efforts late Thursday.
“The extent of this rescue operation is simply unbelievable”, said Col. Frederic Labrunye, commander of the provincial gendarmerie group of Haute-Savoie.
They were the last of 110 sightseers trapped when the cable cars ground to a halt Thursday afternoon in the shadow of Mont Blanc, western Europe’s loftiest peak.
Timing of the rescue efforts was dependent on weather conditions and nightfall.
After helicopters were grounded, some people – those closest to the ground – were extracted by rescuers working from the glacier beneath them, the AP says. The tourists, mostly Italian, French and U.S. citizens, were on their way to Helbronner in Italy.
Those still stuck had access to emergency blankets, energy bars and bottles of water in the cars.
The incident was caused by cables that got crossed for “unknown reasons”, but a gust of wind is thought to have played a part, Dechavanne said on Thursday.
A technical team from the company was unable to fix the cables and chose to call the mountain police rescuers.
The cable cars – known at the Panoramic Mont-Blanc gondola – connect the Aiguille de Midi peak in France at 12,605 feet to Pointe Helbronner in Italy at 11,358 feet.
“We were in touch with them all night”.
The rescue operation involved three helicopters from Switzerland, France and Italy, Dechavanne said earlier.
“This worked in two places, but unfortunately not in the third, and taking into account the fact that time was passing and in line with procedures, we chose to alert our emergency services to carry out a helicopter rescue”, he said. The rescue operation will resume at 6:30 a.m. local time.
The 5km (3 mile) route is called the Vallee Blanche cable vehicle and transports passengers between Aiguille du Midi in France and Hellbronner in Italy.
Advertisement
Up to 80 people are trapped in cable cars in the French Alps and are expected to be stuck overnight after cables became tangled.
