In a harrowing ordeal, 174 individuals stranded in cable cars high above a mountain in southern Turkey have been successfully rescued after a terrifying accident left them suspended in the air for nearly a day.
The rescue operation concluded nearly 23 hours after the incident unfolded on Friday afternoon, when one pod of a cable car struck a pole, causing it to rupture and sending passengers plummeting to the mountainside below. Tragically, one person lost their life, while seven others sustained injuries.
Despite the swift response of rescue teams, hundreds were left stranded, with more than 40 individuals remaining trapped high above the mountain for 19 hours following the accident. The incident occurred on the Tunektepe cable car, located just outside the bustling Mediterranean city of Antalya, during the busy Eid al-Fitr holiday.
A massive rescue effort involving 607 search and rescue personnel and 10 helicopters, some equipped with night-vision capabilities, swung into action. Operations continued tirelessly throughout the night from Friday to Saturday to bring the stranded passengers to safety.
Among those rescued was Hatice Polat, an Istanbul resident, and her family, who endured seven hours of fear and uncertainty before being rescued. Recounting the ordeal to the Anadolu agency, Polat described how the power outage caused the pod to flip multiple times, leaving passengers, including children, in a state of panic and distress.
“The night was awful, we were very scared. There were children with us, they passed out,” Polat said. “It was torture being up there for seven hours. It is swaying every second, you’re constantly in fear… It was very traumatic, I don’t know how we’ll get over this trauma.”
