Dozens of passengers have been rescued after being stranded for hours in sagging gondola cars when a support tower collapsed Tuesday in western Canada, reports reaching here said.
The accident happened earlier Tuesday when the tower at the foot of Mountain Blackcomb in Whistler, British Columbia, suddenly leaned sideways, leaving about 15 cars dangling on the cable, Doug Forseth, senior vice president of the resort, told reporters.
Firefighters used long ladders to rescue the passengers, while a crane was used to prevent the tower from collapsing further.
Forseth said a total of 53 passengers had been rescued. He said no more people are trapped.
About five people received minor injuries and were taken to hospital.
Forseth said it is not clear what caused the structural failure, but an investigation would be conducted Wednesday.
This is not the first accident to happen on a ski lift at Whistler-Blackcomb, which will host alpine events at the 2010 Winter Games.
In 1993, an accident on Whistler's Quicksilver lift killed two men, and injured nine others.
Source:Xinhua
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