2024-01-11 20:20:02
Experts see a “chain of several unfavorable natural conditions”. The Acherkogelbahn will resume operations on Friday.
INNSBRUCK. The investigation by the cable car authority into the cause of the gondola crash in the Tyrolean ski area of Hochoetz (Imst district) on Tuesday, in which a four-person Danish holidaymaker family was seriously injured, was concluded on Thursday evening. Experts saw a “chain of several unfavorable natural conditions,” said the mountain railways. Operations will resume on Friday. The condition of the 49-year-old father, who was critically injured, was still critical.
Several experts, including employees of the forestry inspection and geologists, examined the accident site. As the Hochoetz mountain railway announced on Thursday evening, a total of three falling trees were responsible for the accident. A 28 meter high tree fell along with a smaller tree towards the cable car route, and a third tree was taken away. “The fallen trees were not so-called edge trees that stood directly next to the route, but were more than 20 meters away from the route,” it said.
A possible explanation for the accident was that the trees had “a relatively small root system with little penetration depth due to the nature of the soil” and were “on rocky ground that was not very fissured.” What is certain, however, is that the gondola crashed as a result of the trees falling onto the rope or the clamp and the “possible dragging of the trees along the rope”.
The Imst district police commander, Hubert Juen, told the APA in the followingnoon that the exact course of the accident might “probably never be finally clarified”. He also brought into play the snow load on the trees and the loosening of the soil due to previous ice formation and subsequent thawing. In any case, it wasn’t windy on the day of the accident. The rope of the affected Acherkogelbahn did not break in the accident in which the gondola fell from a height of ten to twelve meters. The police had further interrogations on Thursday, for example of mountain railway employees. Once the investigation has been completed, a report will be handed over to the public prosecutor’s office, and criminally relevant matters will also be examined.
Bergbahnen Hochoetz has now assured that “all checks of the cable car system necessary for safe operation as well as further measures along the route” have been carried out. The cable car authority gave the green light to resume operations on Thursday evening. The injured were expressed their “deepest regret” over the incident.
A total of six people were injured in the accident, four of them seriously. In addition to the 49-year-old father, his son (20), daughter (19) and brother (46) were also affected. The 49-year-old was still in the intensive care unit on Thursday and was unresponsive. This situation might remain this way for some time, the clinic told the APA. A German couple who were in the neighboring gondola were also injured due to the vibrations of the suspension cable.
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