Ski lift collapse in Spain injures at least 30 people - Jan 2025

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

At least 30 people are reported to have been injured after a ski lift partially collapsed in northern Spain.

The Astún resort in the Spanish Pyrenees, where the incident happened, was closed as rescue services attended the scene.

Images and video circulating on social media showed a number of people lying on the snow beneath the ski lift.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was "shocked" by the news of the incident.

A pulley at one end of the chairlift came loose and part of the structure supporting it collapsed, causing a cable to lose tension and several seats to fall, according to state broadcaster TVE.

Seventeen people needed medical attention, local media reported.  Ambulances and helicopters took some of the injured to hospital.  Dozens of people left hanging on the 15m (50ft) high chairlift have since been rescued.

Jaime Pelegri, who was on the lift, told the BBC that a cable lost tension before the chairs on his side of the structure fell. "It was very scary, but very fast," he said - adding that ambulances and helicopters arrived at the scene within 15 minutes.

Previously in a post on X: "Luckily we are fine but there are injured people, we have seen several stretchers coming down."

Miguel Ángel Clavero, the director of emergencies for the Aragon region, where the incident occurred, told TVE: "We are talking about around 30 to 35 people injured, including serious, very serious and less serious injuries.  Apparently, there was a failure in the return pulley of one of the chairlifts and this caused the cable to lose tension, causing some chairs to fall and others to remain hanging," he said.

Images on social media appear to show one of the chairlift's flywheels off its upright. The cause of the incident is not yet known.

Regional President Jorge Azcón and Spain's Minister of the Interior Roberto Bermúdez de Castro went to the scene.  Azcón wrote on X: "All the necessary services of the [government] are working to assist the affected and injured people."

PM Pedro Sánchez said he had spoken with Azcón to offer the "full support" of the government.  A telephone line has been set up for the families of those affected.

The Astún resort, which is popular with skiers, is located in the Aragon region of the Pyrenees mountains, near the border with France.

[Noggin]

It looks like the bullwheel assembly at the top of the lift collapsed, but fortunately the steelwork was strong enough to support the steel cable and it didn't snap. 

Short of a snapped cable, the worse case scenario is if a full-loaded chairlift goes into reverse, in which case gravity can make things very nasty indeed.

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Two women in intensive care after Spain ski lift collapse

Two young women remain in intensive care after a chairlift at a ski resort in Spain collapsed on Saturday, leaving several people injured.

The Astún resort in the Spanish Pyrenees, where the incident happened, was closed as rescue services attended the scene but has since reopened.

A pulley failure appears to have caused a cable to slacken and some chairs to drop to the ground, throwing skiers into the snow.

Authorities are investigating what went wrong, state media reports. A statement from the resort, external stressed it has "all the permits and inspections".

Regional officials initially estimated that about 30 people had been hurt, but the ski resort later said around 15 people had been considered injured.  Local emergency services triaged those who had fallen at the resort. They said 10 people were taken to hospital, and 20 others were discharged "on the spot".

The two 18-year-olds in the worst condition were airlifted by helicopter to a hospital in Zaragoza, Spanish state media reports. One is said to be stable while the other remains under observation but is improving.

A pulley at one end of the chairlift came loose and part of the structure supporting it collapsed, causing a cable to lose tension and several seats to fall, according the state broadcaster TVE.  Dozens of people left hanging on the 15m-high (50ft) chairlift were helped down.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was "shocked" by the news of the incident.

Jaime Pelegri, who was on the lift, told the BBC that a cable lost tension before the chairs on his side of the structure fell.  "It was very scary, but very fast," he said - adding that ambulances and helicopters arrived at the scene within 15 minutes.  He wrote in a post on X earlier: "Luckily we are fine but there are injured people, we have seen several stretchers coming down."

Images on social media appear to show one of the chairlift's flywheels off its upright.

Regional President Jorge Azcón and Spain's Minister of the Interior Roberto Bermúdez de Castro went to the scene.

Azcón wrote on X: "All the necessary services of the [government] are working to assist the affected and injured people."

PM Pedro Sánchez said he had spoken with Azcón to offer the "full support" of the government.  A telephone line has been set up for the families of those affected.

The Astún resort, which is popular with Spanish skiers, is located in the Aragon region of the Pyrenees mountains, near the border with France.