A tragic accident rocked the heart of Lisbon today with the derailment and crash of the Gloria funicular, which connects the lower part of the city to the Barrio Alto, a popular destination for tourists and locals alike. At least 15 people died and at least twenty were injured, five of them seriously, according to official sources reported by state TV and other Portuguese media.

The situation, however, still provisional, could worsen further.

Sources at the Italian Embassy in Lisbon reported that an Italian woman suffered minor injuries . Fortunately, she was treated immediately and suffered minor injuries. However, the Embassy said it remains in contact with the Portuguese authorities and the Farnesina crisis unit.

According to an initial reconstruction by firefighters, who rushed to the scene with ambulances and civil defense vehicles, a cable broke, causing one of the two elevators to derail and fall when it was at its highest point. Another theory among technicians regarding the cause of the accident is that the car's braking system failed. The car crashed into a building adjacent to the tracks near the Plaza de los Restauradores below, and crumpled on impact. Many passersby in the area fled toward nearby Avenida de la Libertat to seek safety, according to numerous testimonies reported by Portuguese media.

Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas, who described it as a "very serious, unprecedented accident," and Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz arrived on the scene to closely monitor the rescue operations, while the victims are still being extracted from the wreckage. The nationalities of the victims are still unknown.

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa immediately reacted with a message on the official website of the Presidency of the Republic, expressing his "deepest condolences," particularly "for the dead and seriously injured." Prime Minister Luis Montenegro also expressed his condolences, and a day of national mourning was declared.

The Portuguese capital's iconic means of transport has a capacity of 45 people and is used by approximately one million people a year, both tourists and residents. The Gloria funicular was declared a national monument in 2022 and is one of the city's oldest means of transport still used to ascend Lisbon's hills. On May 7, 2018, a maintenance system malfunctioned, causing a near-miss in the system, but there were no casualties.

(Unioneonline)

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