Portugal Probes Deadly Lisbon Funicular Crash That Claimed 17 Lives

Portuguese authorities are investigating the cause of a catastrophic crash involving Lisbon’s historic Glória funicular, a popular tourist attraction, which derailed and slammed into a building on Wednesday, killing at least 17 people and injuring 21 others. 

The wrecked yellow carriage, which shuttles passengers along a 265-meter steep incline in central Lisbon, was left crumpled after the traction cable connecting it to its counterpart snapped, causing it to hurtle uncontrollably down the hill.

Abel Esteves, a 75-year-old Lisbon resident, along with his wife and grandson, were among the 40 passengers in the lower carriage who narrowly escaped disaster as the runaway car derailed just meters away. 

“I told my wife: ‘We’re all going to die here’,” he said. “It picked up a brutal speed, took a slight turn and hit the building with a loud bang.”

Thirty-eight people were hurt in the accident, with 15 killed at the scene while one more died in hospital overnight. Lisbon’s director of emergency services Margarida Martins had earlier said that 17 had died.

Among the injured were four Portuguese, two Germans, two Spanish, one Korean, one Cape Verdean, one Canadian, one Italian, one French citizen, one Swiss and one Moroccan, Martins said.

Reuters