Battagram cable car rescue mission successfully ends with army’s swift action

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Tuesday announced that the Pakistan Army’s Special Services Group (SSG) have successfully rescued all eight passengers — seven schoolchildren and a teacher — who were dangling mid-air after the rope of a cable car broke in Allai Tehsil in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Battagram district.

“Relieved to know that Alhamdolillah all the kids have been successfully and safely rescued. Great team work by the military, rescue departments, district administration as well as the local people,” the premier wrote on X, previously known as Twitter.

Earlier today, an open cable car became stranded halfway across a ravine and was hanging by a single cable after the other snapped, leaving eight people stuck inside for more than 15 hours.

Before sunset, two of the children were rescued with the help of an army helicopter but the operation via copter was suspended due to darkness and the windy weather.

The army later started a ground operation — led by SSG’s general officer commanding (GOC) — to retrieve the remaining five people on the cable car with alternative means.

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Another cable car — smaller in size — was hung on the same cable to retrieve the people and deliver food and water to them. The Pakistan Army also brought in a local cable crossings expert for help.

Earlier in the morning, the open cable car became stranded halfway across a ravine and was hanging by a single cable after the other snapped, Shariq Riaz Khattak a rescue official at the site told Reuters.

Following the incident, helicopters of the Pakistan Army Aviation and the Pakistan Air Force participated in the rescue operation along with the SSG troops.

The rescue mission was complicated due to gusty winds in the area and the fact the helicopter’s rotor blades risk further destabilising the lift, said Khattak.