NORTH CREEK, NEW YORK — Nearly 70 people were rescued from gondola cabins at an upstate New York ski area after a mechanical problem shut down the lift system, leaving skiers stranded for hours up to 70 feet (21 meters) in the air, authorities said.
At Gore Mountain in North Creek, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) north of Albany, employees and state parks rangers climbed lift poles and used ropes and body harnesses to lower people to the ground on Wednesday. The operation took approximately five hours. No one was injured.
About 67 skiers in 20 gondola cabins were helped back to land. Residents on the mountain said there was some anxiety among those trapped, and concerns about having to use the bathroom. Although temperatures were below freezing, the cabins remained warm as the doors were closed and the sun was shining, they said.
“It was sobering and something I will probably carry with me for the rest of my life,” said Kevin Pollan, a 64-year-old physician’s assistant and longtime skier, who was stuck in one of the cabins for about five hours.
“You never thought about taking an elevator or taking a gondola, and now you’ll think twice,” said the Newcomb, New York, resident. “You’ll make sure you go to the bathroom and maybe have electrical tape with you and make sure you’re prepared, just like if you were going into the woods for a walk.”
He said that the rescue operations went very smoothly, and praised the professionalism of the guards and ski area employees.
The New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority, which operates Gore Mountain, said the gondola lift’s tower wheel assembly went out of alignment, triggering a safety sensor and causing the lift to stop immediately.
The authority said in a statement: “Our trained mountain operations team carried out the evacuation, and guests were supported throughout the process.” “Safety remains our top priority, and our teams are fully trained and experienced in managing such situations.”
Park rangers and the Gore Mountain Ski Patrol trained together for gondola evacuations in November, climbing lift towers and crossing cables to reach the gondola, just as they did Wednesday, officials said.
The gondola lift reopened Thursday.