Race against time to rescue children trapped in cable car over 1,200 ft valley

A military rescue is currently underway for six children and two adults trapped in a cable car over a 1,200 foot valley in Pakistan.

The group was on their way to school when one of the cables snapped, leaving it dangling 900 feet above ground, officials said.

A local teacher said that about 150 people take the hazardous journey to school by cable car daily because of lack of public transportation – most of the Allai area in Pakistan has no infrastructure like roads or basic facilities.

Helicopters have reached the incident, but rescue conditions are still precarious.

Pakistan’s acting Prime Minister has ordered rescuers to respond to the “alarming” incident in Battagram, in Pakistan’s northwest.

The eight passengers were trapped for at least four hours before the first helicopter arrived, local media outlets reported.

The incident occurred around 7am local time on Tuesday across the Allai Valley in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. Residents spotted the cable car stranded mid-air and used loudspeakers to alert local officials.

The open chair-lift is now being “suspended by a single rope”, officials said.

Local police officer Muhammad Amjad told the BBC that four helicopters are in involved in the operation, but attempts have been unsuccessful.

Assistant commissioner of Allai Jawad Hussain told BBC that water and food has been delivered to the stranded people by the rescue team from the helicopter.

The operation is being complicated by both gusty winds and worries that the helicopter blades could further destabilize the chair-lift.

The six children on the car are aged between 10 and 16 years old.

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An adults stuck in the cable car said a 16-year-old onboard has a heart condition and has been unconscious for at least two hours.

Another rescue worker confirmed that a child had fainted due to heat and fear.

Gulfaraz also told a local news channel: “For God’s sake help us. People in our area are standing here and crying.”.

Daylight is running out and the local forecast shows hot and humid conditions with gusty winds, as well as a few periods of heavy rain or thunderstorms throughout Tuesday and Wednesday.

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