Three tourists were among four people who were killed when a cable car crashed south of Naples, Italy. The victims included a British woman, an Israeli woman, and the Italian driver of the cable car. The accident occurred on Thursday, with the initial cause believed to be a snapped traction cable that caused one car to crash after both upward and downward-going cable cars came to a halt while traversing Monte Faito in Castellammare di Stabia. A fifth person, believed to be a foreign tourist, was seriously injured and is receiving treatment in a hospital in Naples.
Sixteen other passengers were rescued from the second cable car that was stuck mid-air near the mountain’s base. The cable car had just reopened for the season and local prosecutors have opened an investigation into possible manslaughter. The emergency services, including Italy’s alpine rescue teams, over 50 firefighters, police, and civil protection personnel worked into the evening under severe weather conditions to conduct rescue operations. Luigi Vicinanza, the mayor of Castellammare di Stabia, stated that the emergency brake downstream worked, but not the one on the cabin entering the station.
The EAV public transport firm, which operated the cable car, stated that all required safety conditions had been met when reopening for the season just a week prior to the accident. EAV President Umberto De Gregorio expressed confusion over the cause of the crash, as the cable car had undergone months of regular safety tests. Technical experts believe that severe weather conditions were not connected to the cause of the crash. The Monte Faito cable car had been in operation since 1952, with a previous fatal accident occurring in 1960 due to a broken pylon.
Italy has been the site of similar fatal cable car accidents, including a crash in May 2021 in northern Italy that resulted in the deaths of 14 people, including six Israelis. Another incident occurred in 1998 when a low-flying U.S. military jet cut through the cable of a ski lift in Cavalese, in the Dolomites, killing 20 people. The recent cable car crash has raised concerns regarding the safety of such transportation systems, prompting an investigation into possible safety lapses that may have contributed to the tragic accident. Authorities are examining the cable stations, pylons, cabins, and cables to determine the exact cause of the malfunction that led to the deaths of the four individuals, including three tourists.
