A chairlift accident at a ski resort in northeastern Spain, located in the Pyrenees near the French border, made Saturday “many injured”announced local authorities. 17 are seriously injured, including 9 very seriously, according to the Spanish daily The Country.
And “chairlift accident in Astún ski resort” made “many injured”indicated the emergency services in a message published on the social network X, without giving further details.
“Obviously, there was a problem with the pulley of one of the chairlifts, which led to a loss of tension in the cable and the fall of some chairlifts”explained Miguel Ángel Clavero, director of emergency services for the Aragon region, where the Astún station is located. .
“People stole”
According to local media, at least nine people were seriously injured in this accident at this station located in Aragon. Around thirty others were less seriously injured. Quoted by The Countrya witness says: “The slopes were full, because it’s a sunny day and there’s good snow. One of the wheels that turn the chairs broke, people felt ups and downs, an arching effect, some users even turned around and found themselves face down on the ground.
On public television TVE, one of the victims, Maria Moreno, explained: “We suddenly heard a noise and fell to the ground in the chairlift. We bounced five times, up, down and our backs hurt and took hits but there were people who fell off the chairlifts.
-A young man, who witnessed the incident, told public television TVE that he had seen a cable from the chairlift mechanism jump. “Suddenly the chairlifts started bouncing and people were flying,” he said.
Five helicopters and around ten ambulances were mobilized to evacuate the injured to nearby hospitals, according to media reports. According to the Spanish daily The Countryfirefighters, psychologists and 24 resuscitation ambulances were also sent to the scene. In addition, there are more advanced survival vehicles and 14 more conventional ambulances.
The ski resort was evacuated and closed to the public.
Update : at 2:45 p.m., with new elements; at 3:10 p.m. with a new report of around thirty injured.
