A disastrous incident recently hit the Elevador da Glória funicular in Lisbon, Portugal. Outpouring of grief One week ago tragedy unfolded as 16 people lost their lives and at least 20 others were injured, five of them critically. On Wednesday, the transient nature of luck became horrifyingly clear when the funicular carriage snapped its balancing cable. It thus crashed into a building, crashing into it at a speed of 60 km/h (37 mph).
The failure happened a mere 337 days into the cable’s projected 600-day operational life. Eyewitnesses estimated that the trolleys moved only six meters before they severed the cable that connected their two carriages. This failure set off a chain reaction disaster that happened in only 50 seconds. The number of passengers in that carriage and pedestrians on that street at that time is unknown.
Among the victims were British couple Kayleigh Smith, 36, and William Nelson, 44. Their families shared their deep sadness in remarks released after the tragedy.
“Words cannot begin to describe how our family and friends are feeling right now but here is the best attempt.” – Nelson’s brother
He remembered Nelson as “constantly gentle, altruistic, and watchful.” It’s tough to have lost an absolute hero, but we are grateful for the time we had with him, and will miss you forever. “Love you, rest in peace you legend.
Smith’s family shared their sorrow, highlighting her wit and caring nature: “Kayleigh was loved by family and friends for her wit and humour. Her kind and caring nature came to the fore in her work as a funeral operative.
The funicular—whose approximately 40-passenger cars operate like elevators, with their sides open to allow access to the stations—was closed for regular checks before the tragedy. The morning before the accident, there was a visual inspection performed. The NTSB specifically ruled out any anomalies in the cable or braking systems.
“According to the evidence observed so far, the scheduled maintenance plan was up to date, and a scheduled visual inspection had been conducted on the morning of the accident, which detected no anomalies in the vehicles’ cable or braking systems,” – the Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft Accidents and Railway Accidents.
The section of the cable that broke was considered “not visible without disassembly”—raising alarm bells about inspection procedures. As the state and federal authorities work towards figuring out how exactly such a tragic failure could happen, two criminal investigations are ongoing into the accident.