Sixteen people died in the serious funicular accident in Portugal's capital, Lisbon, on Wednesday evening, Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro announced on Thursday afternoon. He thus corrected previous reports from local authorities of 17 deaths. Five of the 21 injured were also seriously injured, and Montenegro declared it"one of the greatest human tragedies in our recent history." The cause remained unclear.
Many tourists among the victims
A rescue representative confirmed that a three-year-old child was among the injured, but did not disclose his nationality. According to the Lisbon Civil Protection Agency, at least eleven foreign nationals were among the 21 injured: in addition to two Germans, two Spaniards, a French woman, an Italian, a Swiss national, and one each from Canada, South Korea, Morocco, and Cape Verde.
Margarida Castro, spokeswoman for the city's civil defense, did not provide any information on the identities of the dead. The 15 people who died instantly were eight men and seven women. According to current information, no Austrians were among the victims, according to the Foreign Ministry in Vienna.
Investigations into the cause of the accident
The total number of dead and injured roughly corresponds to the maximum capacity of the funicular, which travels up and down a steep hill several times a day and is one of the tourist attractions of the Portuguese capital. The cause of the accident was still unclear. Investigators were still working on the cable car wreck Thursday morning.
Photo gallery: 16 people die in funicular accident in Lisbon
Portuguese media quoted an eyewitness as saying that one of the yellow funiculars came to an abrupt stop at the end of its route, just beyond its intended stop. The eyewitness and others rushed to help passengers disembark and then noticed another funicular racing down the sloping street at full speed. They ran away, but the funicular did not hit the previously arrived car, but instead derailed on a curve and crashed into a building.
Operation of the other three funiculars suspended
Several Portuguese media outlets cited the breakage of a safety cable as a possible cause of the accident and expressed doubts about proper maintenance. The city administration suspended operations of the remaining three funiculars in Lisbon as a precautionary measure. Their functionality and safety will first be checked, announced Civil Protection spokeswoman Castro.
Carris, which operates local public transport in Lisbon, had previously assured that"all maintenance protocols" had been followed. Accordingly, the general maintenance, which is due every four years, was carried out in 2022 and the interim maintenance, which is due every two years, was carried out in 2024. However, Carris CEO Pedro Bogas admitted at the scene of the accident that a subcontractor had been handling maintenance for 14 years.
National mourning and sympathy from Austria
The"Gloria" funicular railway was put into operation in 1885 and connected to the power grid in 1915. The accident shocked Lisbon's citizens and tourists. The Portuguese government declared a national day of mourning for Thursday. Flags in Lisbon flew at half-mast.
"My thoughts are with the families and relatives of the victims. I wish the injured a speedy recovery," said Chancellor Christian Stocker (ÖVP) in the short message service X.
"Our thoughts and deepest sympathy go out to the victims, their families, and all those affected. We pray for the injured. We stand with our Portuguese friends in this difficult time of mourning," Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger (Neos) posted on Wednesday evening.
