Cable car accident kills one, prompts massive rescue effort in Turkiye

One person was killed and 10 others injured in the southern Turkish province of Antalya when a cable car cabin collided with a broken pole, prompting a massive operation that rescued a further 174 passengers, including children, Turkish officials said on Saturday.
One cable car in the Sarisu-Tunektepe system plummeted into a rocky area, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said.
Turkish prosecutors launched an investigation and ordered the detention of 13 people in relation to the incident, including officials from the private company running the cable car, Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc told reporters.
“The incident occurred because of inadequate and corroded fastenings at the connection points of the cable car’s support towers,” the minister said on social media platform X, referring to a preliminary report that also pointed to the poor condition of the pulley systems.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said in a statement on X that 10 helicopters and more than 607 rescue workers were involved in rescue efforts that lasted 23 hours after 24 cabins were stranded in the air on Friday.
A video released by the interior ministry showed rescue personnel tied to safety ropes climbing into cabins.
According to the information on its website, the cable car has 36 cabins with a capacity of six people each, and it takes an average of nine minutes to go uphill to the Tunektepe facility with panoramic views of the city of Antalya.
The cable car company could not be reached for comment.
Ayse Hatice Polat, a woman in her fifties who had been trapped in a cabin for more than 21 hours, kissed the ground as she descended from the helicopter, several local media reported.
Ten helicopters and more than 600 rescuers, including specialist mountaineers, had been at the scene, authorities said.