Race to Rescue 6 Children and 2 Adults Trapped in Chairlift Dangling 900 Feet over Ravine

The group got stuck when their chairlift cables broke in Pakistan on Tuesday morning

Rescue efforts are being made to save 6 children and 2 adults trapped in a chairlift dangling 900 feet above a ravine near the city of Battagram, Pakistan.

Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said the group found themselves trapped in the chairlift when one of its cables broke on their way to school in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 9 a.m. local time on Tuesday, reported CNN.

One of the passengers, 20-year-old Gulfaraz, told Pakistan news outlet Geo News that both cables broke down, the first at 7 a.m. and the second shortly after that. He said that another 16-year-old passenger, who was traveling to the hospital, had been unconscious for three hours.

“The first cable broke down after the chairlift traveled a mile,” Gulfaraz told Geo News. He added that those trapped don’t have “drinking water” and urged authorities for help, saying that “people in our area are standing here and crying.”

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The passenger confirmed that the 6 children trapped in the chairlift are students aged between 10-16 years old, according to the outlet.

“A chairlift at a height of about 900 feet got stuck in the middle due to a broken cable in Battagram. 8 persons including 6 children are stranded,” NDMA said in a translated statement on Tuesday. “After co-operation with PDMA and Pakistan Army, an army helicopter has been dispatched for a rescue operation.”

Video obtained by BBC News has since shown two military helicopters reaching the vehicle as rescue teams begin the complicated process of saving the passengers.

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One security official described the rescue mission as an “extremely dangerous and risky operation," due to high winds in the area and the close proximity of the helicopter blades to the chairlift.

“All efforts are being made by Pakistan army to rescue the stranded people in the lift,” the anonymous official added to NBC News.

Headmaster Ali Asghar Khan of the high school of the trapped students shared that the children’s families are now gathered at the scene as they wait for them to be rescued.

"The parents are gathered at the site of the chairlift. We are all worried," Mr Khan told AFP news agency, per BBC News. A local teacher added to the news outlet that the journey is taken by around 150 students every day, due to the lack of transport available in the city.

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Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar described the situation as “alarming” as he addressed the trapped passengers in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“The chairlift accident in Battagram, KP is really alarming,” he wrote. “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 private chairlifts and ensure that they are safe to operate and use,” Kakar added.

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