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TOKYO - Ninety people were trapped for up to 12 hours in gondolas when a ski lift broke down at a ski resort in Japan on Saturday, Japanese media reported.
Rescuers had to scale the ski lift at Otaki, 180km northwest of Tokyo, force open the door on each of the 44 gondolas and winch the passengers one-by-one to the ground about 20m below in freezing temperatures.
The ski lift broke down about 10.30am (2.30pm NZT), but with the gondolas strung out along a 2.4km cable it was nearly 10pm (2am NZT) when the last passengers were lowered to safety, the Yomiuri newspaper and Kyodo news service reported.
No one was hurt but two women who felt unwell had been taken to hospital, the news agency said. The breakdown was caused by a cable coming loose from a pulley, it said.
- REUTERS
