Emergency companies within the Portuguese capital Lisbon stated that not less than 15 folks had been killed and 18 injured one Wednesday when one of many metropolis’s iconic yellow Gloria railway automobiles derailed.
In a press release, the Nationwide Institute for Medical Emergencies stated that 5 of the injured had been in critical situation, together with a toddler, and that some had been foreigners.
In line with emergency companies, the entire victims have been recovered from the wreckage.
What do we all know concerning the accident?
The well-known funicular, which travels up and down a steep avenue in central Lisbon, is utilized by locals and vacationers alike.
In line with eye-witnesses, the railway automotive hurtled down the hill, apparently uncontrolled, earlier than crashing.
“It hit the constructing with brutal drive and fell aside like a cardboard field,” resident Teresa d’Avo instructed Portuguese TV channel SIC.
Video and pictures from the scene confirmed that the practice tipped over and severely broken, with its sides and roof partially crumpled. It appeared to have crashed right into a constructing the place the highway bends.
A number of dozen emergency employees attended the scene however most had been stood down after about two hours.
The Portuguese authorities stated that an investigation into the causes will start as soon as the rescue operation is over.
Politicians supply condolences
Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas referred to as the accident an “unprecedented tragedy” and stated that the town was in mourning. The Portuguese authorities stated {that a} nationwide day of mourning could be held on Thursday.
Portugese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa provided his condolences to the affected households.
European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen additionally provided her condolences. “It’s with unhappiness that I discovered of the derailment of the well-known ‘Elevador da Gloria,'” she wrote in Portuguese on X.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez wrote on X that he was “appalled by the horrible accident,” whereas Italian Overseas Minister Antonio Tajani stated he had met together with his Portuguese counterpart and expressed his “solidarity with the victims.”
What’s the Gloria funicular?
The Gloria funicular, which opened in 1885, connects an space of downtown Lisbon close to Restauradores Sq. to the Bairro Alto (Higher Quarter), which is legendary for its vibrant nightlife.
The 2 automobiles, which might every carry round 40 folks, are connected to reverse ends of a haulage cable, and electrical motors on the automobiles present the traction.
The Gloria line is considered one of three funicular strains operated by the municipal public transportation firm, Carris, and is utilized by vacationers and native residents alike.
In line with the city corridor, the Gloria line transports round 3 million folks yearly.
Edited by: Wesley Dockery
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