12 dead as cable car falls near Murree

MURREE: At least 12 people died and two were injured when a cable car ‘doli’ installed by local villagers broke away from the wires and fell at Charra Pani in the Galiyat region of northern Pakistan on Thursday, rescue officials said.

DIG Hazara Saeed Wazir confirmed the number of fatalities and added that four members of a family were among the dead. 

He also said that technical experts will conduct an inquiry in to the incident. 

The 'doli' cable car was situated over a nullah (drain) between Charra Pani and Banwari, Hazara.

"There was a strong wind which led to the cable car breaking and falling,” an eyewitness, Omair, told Geo News.

The injured were taken to Holy Family Hospital in Rawalpindi, rescue sources said, adding that the 12 deceased had died on the spot. The bodies of the victims have been handed over to their families.

According to reports, the cable car was installed by locals without approval from the concerned departments. It was being used to travel from Tret to Dannah village.

A FIR has been registered against the lift operator - who is also the owner of 'Doli' lift, informed DPO Abbottabad.

When asked if the cable car was being used for commercial purposes, Deputy Commissioner Rawalpindi Talat Mehmood Gondal said the incident took place in Abbottabad district which is part of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the provincial government would be able to answer this question.

“We received a call of the accident taking place and Rescue 1122 along with District Rawalpindi immediately mobilised and the rescue operation was completed at the earliest,” DC Rawalpindi Talat Mehmood Gondal added.

A spokesperson for the Galiyat Development Authority said the main chairlift in Ayubia had not been affected and is being operated as per routine. 

Families of the victims blamed the 'substandard cable car' operators and the government for the tragedy and blocked the main road in protest. The demonstration resulted in creating a massive traffic jam in the already tourist-congested hill station. 

PM expresses grief over loss of lives

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif expressed grief over the loss of precious lives in the chairlift incident at Charra Pani and directed concerned authorities for immediate medical aid to the injured. 

Chairlift accidents are common in mountainous areas of Pakistan, where the lifts are often used to cross rivers.

Four people drowned when a chairlift broke in Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan in northern Pakistan last month