Cable railway drama in Dornbirn: 19 passengers saved after Sturm!

Cable railway drama in Dornbirn: 19 passengers saved after Sturm!

Karrenseilbahn, Dornbirn, Österreich - on June 23, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. there was a dramatic incident in the cart cable car in Dornbirn when a strong gust of wind had a gear rope and the pull rope of the gondola. At that time there were 19 people and a dog in the mountain side gondola. The gondola was positioned at a height of 60 to 80 meters and about 250 meters from the mountain station. The cable car was immediately stopped to avoid further dangers. This reported Seilbahn.net .

The incident triggered an extensive rescue operation. An official rod was set up in the valley station. An exploration flight with the Libelle police helicopter was carried out to assess the Situation. Experts in the cable car, an emergency doctor and three mountain rescuers were roped to the roof of the gondola to secure the trapped people and to provide medical help.

recovery of passengers

The salvage of the 19 passengers started at 7:15 p.m. and went according to plan. The technicians secured the gondola on the carrying rope, while the emergency doctor took over medical care on site. The people were carefully roped into a piece of forest underneath, where they were brought to the valley station on rough terrain. The last person came safely around 9:52 p.m. Even chainsaws had to be used to clear the forest path because it was impassable.

A total of 57 rescue workers from Dornbirn, Hohenems, Bezau and Bregenz were ready to provide support. 15 officials from the Dornbirn fire brigade, 9 rescue workers from the Red Cross and a crisis intervention team were also on site to help passengers and coordinate the situation. Two people were admitted to the Dornbirn hospital due to injuries, but the rescue operation for everyone else went without further complications. orf vorarlberg confirmed that the rescue operation was successfully carried out.

security measures and technical reviews

Although this dramatic derailment took place, cable car systems are usually very safe. Annual exams by external experts, regular monitoring in the company and technical security measures such as lightning rods ensure that accidents are extremely rare. explains that the operators carry out weekly and monthly controls in order to identify possible technical defects at an early stage. These proactive measures are intended to prevent unannounced external influences, such as lightning strikes or material fatigue, to endanger security.

The cart cable car is not only important for regional tourism, but also an example of the modern use and safety of cable cars in the Alps. The incident shows how quickly unforeseen situations can occur, but also how effectively rescue actions can be organized in such cases - and that is a clear encouragement for everyone who wants to explore the mountains in Vorarlberg.