In what is a nightmare for parents, six children are trapped 900 ft mid-air after the wires of their chairlift or cable car snapped in a mountainous area in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Tuesday.

Apart from the children, there are 2 adults, bringing the total to eight.

The chairlift is dangling in the middle of a deep ravine surrounded by towering mountains and a rocky surface, along with the Jhangri river beneath it, as reported by Dawn newspaper.

Rescue operation for chairlift stuck at 900ft mid-air

Pakistan Army has launched a complicated rescue operation for the same, which is currently underway.



Run by locals to cross river due to lack of road

The children were headed to school when the incident occurred at around 8 am in Battagram's Allai tehsil, the Express Tribune newspaper reported.

Locals use the chairlift as a way to cross the river as there are no roads or bridges in the area, according to Allai tehsil chairperson Mufti Gulamullah. He said that the chairlift was privately run by locals for transportation.

According to a local school teacher, Zafar Iqbal, at least 150 students take the hazardous journey to school by cable car every day due to the lack of road facilities in the area, the Dawn newspaper reported.

Video grab showing the cable car stuck mid-air/ Umeed Sahar via Reuters

The breakage of one of its cables has been said as the reason why it is stuck.



Citing a statement from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Geo News reported, "A chairlift stuck at a height of about 900 ft midway due to breakage in one of its cables in Battagram. Eight persons, including 6 children, stranded."

Need to ensure safety measures for cable cars in hilly areas

Although the local administration and Rescue 1122 teams were present at the spot, they could not carry out the rescue operation due to the height of the hilly area, according to Allai Assistant Commissioner Jawad Hussain.

Thus, Pakistan Army's quick response force had to be called for the rescue operation.

The chairlift accident in Battagram, KP is really alarming. I have directed the NDMA, PDMA and district authorities to urgently ensure safe rescue and evacuation of the 8 people stuck in the chairlift.

I have also directed the authorities to conduct safety inspections of all such… — Anwaar ul Haq Kakar (@anwaar_kakar) August 22, 2023

Interim Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar asked the national and provincial disaster management authorities to utilise all the available resources and issued directives to ensure safety measures for cable cars in the hilly areas.

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