Fifteen dead after out-of-control tourist tram careers down steep hill and smashes into building in Portugal

At least fifteen people are dead after Lisbon’s famous Gloria Funicular derailed on Wednesday evening, according to local media.

The tragedy occurred after one of the cables came loose along the railway’s route, causing it to lose control and career down a steep hill before colliding with a building. 

Footage from the site showed the tram-like funicular, which carries people up and down a hillside in the Portuguese capital, practically destroyed and emergency workers pulling people out of the wreckage.

Witness Teresa d’Avo told Portuguese TV channel SIC: ‘It crashed into a building with brutal force and fell apart like a cardboard box. It crashed with tremendous force. It didn’t have any kind of brakes.’

Portugal’s PSP police force originally confirmed three people were killed and around 20 injured.

According to a live report by CNN Portugal the number of fatalities has now risen to fifteen. 

Civil Protection director Margarida Castro Martins said earlier two of the casualties had been critically injured. It was not clear if they had subsequently died and were among the three fatalities.

Some of the injuries victims have suffered reportedly include open fractures. The nationalities of the victims have not yet been released.

Police, paramedics and firefighters have rushed to the scene. It was not immediately clear what had caused the crash.

The drama occurred at 6.05pm on Wednesday evening after one of the cables reportedly came loose

Footage from the site showed the tram-like funicular, which carries people up and down a hillside in the Portuguese capital, practically destroyed and emergency workers pulling people out of the wreckage

Three of those hurt are said to be in a ‘critical condition’ according to local reports. Some of the injuries victims have suffered including open fractures

Firefighters carrying the body of a person on a stretcher at the site of a derailed electric streetcar in Lisbon, Portugal

Fernando Nunes da Silva, former Lisbon City Council member and engineering specialist, told SIC Notícias that ‘it’s most likely that the traction cable broke and when that cable broke the brakes didn’t work.’

‘The descending elevator gained momentum and continued at great speed,’ he added.

The former councilman says that these elevators ‘have a very sturdy metal structure and were built at a time when very rigid structures were highly valued.’ 

‘For the [elevator] to be in that condition, it had to be hit very hard,’ he notes.

And he says: ‘There is no record of the elevator having had an accident in the last few decades.’

‘Something surprising is that the brakes didn’t work because when a situation like this happens, there are devices in the vehicle that allow braking to be applied. 

‘Even if this doesn’t prevent the derailment, it could have reduced the impact,’ says Nunes da Silva.

He says he’s noticed in many situations involving government functions that ‘there’s a lack of people with a good memory and who learned from their elders.’ ‘All of those people have left,’ he says.

Emergency teams work at the site of a derailed electric streetcar in Lisbon, Portugal, Wednesday

Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said: ‘The President of the Republic deeply regrets the accident that occurred this afternoon with the Gloria funicular railway in Lisbon, particularly the fatalities and serious injuries, as well as the various minor injuries.

‘The President of the Republic offers his condolences and solidarity to the families affected by this tragedy and hopes that the incident will be quickly clarified by the competent authorities.’

Lisbon mayor Carlos Moedas is at the scene.

The funicular railway line is capable of carrying up to 43 people and is one of three of its kind in Lisbon. It is very popular with tourists, who use it to navigate the city’s many steep hills.

The line, which opened in 1885, connects Lisbon’s downtown area near the Restauradores Square with the Bairro Alto (Upper Quarter), famous for its vibrant nightlife. 

It is operated by the municipal public transport company Carris.

Its two cars are attached to opposite ends of a haulage cable with traction provided by electric motors on the two cars.

The car at the bottom of the line was apparently undamaged, but CNN Portugal said passengers had to jump out of its windows when the incident happened

The Aircraft and Railway Accident Prevention and Investigation Office (GPIAAF) will open an investigation into the derailment of the Glória elevator

The car at the bottom of the line was apparently undamaged, but CNN Portugal said passengers had to jump out of its windows when the incident happened.

It was opened in 1885 as the second of its kind in the city. Although it was only electrified in 1915, it still retains its original characteristics.

There are unconfirmed reports several people are still trapped.

The Aircraft and Railway Accident Prevention and Investigation Office (GPIAAF) will open an investigation into the derailment of the Glória elevator.

‘The GPIAAF will open an investigation [into the accident], but due to limited [human] resources in the railway area, it will only begin collecting evidence at the site tomorrow morning [Thursday],’ a source from this public body told Lusa news agency.

This is a breaking news story, more to follow.