Cable car stuck in Cervinia for the strong wind: 130 trapped, almost all of them already in save – The Republic

most of the concluded operations “evacuation” of the 130 skiers blocked from the afternoon of today on the cable car Plan Maison – Cime bianche laghi due to the strong wind that did pass the cables of the ski lifts, just as it did in September on the Mont Blanc.

a helicopter of the airline switzerland, Air Zermatt night-flight enabled was employed in the operations. The wind lost force, and this has enabled the use of aircraft in support to the rescuers who have been involved in the way of acrobatics from the ground by climbing on the pylons and attached to a suspension cable, they have reached the roof and entered through the trapdoor. Then they imbragato people with a winch have fallen to the ground.

once recovered, the passengers were made to board the cats of the snow and conducted to the station of Plan Maison. There have been reported downstream from the plants. There were over 150 men of the alpine rescue of the guardia di finanza, forestry, civil protection and the fire brigade engaged in operations. On the spot also three ambulances and a minibus of 118 with five doctors. They do not have particular concern the weather conditions, thanks to temperatures just below the freezing level.

Adriano Favre, a number of the mountain rescue in the Valley, has taken stock of the situation during rescue operations: “a Few dozens of guides and rescuers to the work they are doing supported by the guard of finance. The situation is under control, but the operations still require time. We are among the 2300 metres up to 2800. The strong wind and cold temperatures, but the situation is under control”. , And here they are the first testimonies of the tourists: “I Was on the chairlift Cretaz when, suddenly, he raised a strong wind. It was about 15.30. In the many years that I’ve come to Cervinia, I have never seen such a thing,” said Edilio Colaotto, tourists of Genoa, which for many years he worked in the mountains of the Aosta Valley. “Snow drifts raised by the wind we were up against – he has told. I was on the ch airlift with another skier who is clinging to the seat while the gusts made us sway. The chairlift stopped continuously, at the end, when we arrived at the summit, they closed the plant. I went down to the valley because it was not possible to ski”.

A similar episode had occurred in September, with the gondola lift from Aiguille du Midi and Punta Hellbronner on the French side of the Mont Blanc, due to a failure forced a hundred people to spend the night in the open, suspended in a vacuum. In reality the scenario is different, at least for some aspects. The word of the expert.

“Some of the cabins in the French are not reachable

from the ground, so you can evacuate without a helicopter. In Cervinia, the situation is different, the plant is able to reach from the ground,” explained the marshal Maximilian Giovannini, in command of the station of the alpine Rescue of the Guardia di Finanza of Cervinia. “There is only one point more complicated, he added, because of some leap of the rock, but you can decline the people if there is someone waiting for”

Topics:

the cable car breuil-Cervinia

the gondola to Plan Maison

the gondola lift from Aiguille du Midi to Punta Hellbronner

Mont Blanc

Cretaz chair-lift

Cervinia

valle d’aosta

Starring:

Adriano Favre

Edilio Colaotto

Maximilian.