Initial investigations indicate that an underground cable of the Lisbon funicular has broken.

BarcelonaAn underground cable that connected the two cars of the historic funicular that He had an accident on Wednesday in Lisbon The cable broke at the attachment point of one of the cabins, according to the initial findings of the investigation being conducted by the government agency in charge of the case. In total, 16 people died and another 23 were injured in the tragic accident. Now the Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft and Railway Accidents (GPIAAF) has reported that the pneumatic brake and the manual brake of the funicular were activated, but this did not stop the movement or reduce the speed of the funicular, which derailed. The accident occurred in just 50 seconds.

The agency has reconstructed the events and specifies that at around 6 p.m. on September 3, the two cars were stopped at a station, following the normal route of the line. Three minutes later, they began to move, but "suddenly lost the balance provided by the cable that connects them" after only advancing six meters. The rear car abruptly rolled back 10 meters and partially left the track, while the front car continued to descend as its speed increased. It traveled approximately 170 meters until, upon reaching a curve, it derailed and crashed into a building.

"Up-to-date" maintenance

The first collision is estimated to have occurred at a speed of 60 km/h and the entire process took place in less than a minute. The technicians who prepared the report detail that the cable that gave way has a useful life of 600 days for this type of use and had been installed 337 days prior. Furthermore, according to the evidence observed so far, the maintenance plan "was up to date" and the scheduled visual inspection was carried out that same morning, and no anomalies were detected in either the cable or the braking systems. However, they clarify that in the area where the cable separated, a visual inspection is not possible without dismantling it.

They also warn that the funicular, founded in 1885, is not under the supervision of the Portuguese Institute of Mobility and Transport, and at the moment they have no "reliable" information regarding its legal status or which public entity is responsible for supervising its operation and safety. The GPIAAF will present its preliminary report in 45 days, which will run concurrently with the criminal investigation being conducted by the prosecutor's office and an internal audit, with the participation of external advisors from Carris, the funicular operator.