Several people have been left injured after a dramatic scene which saw a ski lift completely ‘collapse’ during a horror incident in a popular Spanish tourist destination.
The incident took place at the Astún ski resort, which is located in the Pyrenees mountain range, on the boarder of Spain and France. Local media have revealed that at least 30 people have been injured. Nine of which are “very seriously injured,” and eight seriously injured. The cause of the collapse is currently unknown.
Photos and videos have been shared via social media following the event, with horror scenes showing emergency services flocking to the scene. It is also known a helicopter was deployed to help the situation.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez released an official statement about the incident, and said he was “shocked by the news of the accident All our affection to the injured and their families,” he said.
Jorge Azcón, President of the government of Aragon, also said he had been informed of the incident and was currently travelling to the scene to offer help and support.
The prime minister added that he had spoken with Mr Azcón “to offer him the full support of the government”. The rescue effort is still ongoing, with thoughts that the number of injured tourists might increase.
A telephone line has been set up for the families of those affected. Jaime Pelegrí, a commercial director at Spotify, wrote on X: “Accident in Astún. The Canal Roya chair has fallen. Luckily we are fine but there are injured people, we have seen several stretchers coming down.”
In a video shared to X, several skiers could be seen in their full gear holding their equipment under their arms. They quickly walked away from the scene, with a helicopter seen landing on the snow.
The scene looked extremely busy, with tourists flocking to the resort during prime ski season. In photos, cables can be seen completely detached during the collapse, and a big yellow wheel can be seen on the ground.
Remaining chairs on the lift are seen swinging in the wind, looking unstable on the partly-collapsed chair lift. Tourists were seen fleeing underneath, having got off following the incident.
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