Photo: Linda Clark // Facebook
Dozens of skiers became trapped inside gondola cabins at an upstate News York ski resort Wednesday. In all, 67 people were stuck due to a mechanical issue at the Adirondacks resort Gore Mountain.
Rescue and emergency services were called around 10:30 a.m., as News 10 reports. Soon after, New York governor Kathy Hochul commented on the incident during an unrelated press conference announcing a new state pilot program aimed at expanding access to affordable child care for children. Near the end of the conference, she was passed a note by a staff member, informing her of the still-ongoing rescue.
“I’d like to take a moment to address a situation that we’ve become aware of at Gore Mountain,” she said. “As we speak, there are 67 individuals who, right now, are in gondolas. The power is off, they need to be rescued, and we have our ORDA teams and DEC teams who are specifically trained year-round in how to conduct these rescues.”
The Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) confirmed to CBS that that the stop was caused by a “non-emergency mechanical alignment issue.” They also clarified that the 67 guests were stuck in roughly 20 gondola cabins, and that there had been no reported injuries.
Hochul added that the trapped skiers appeared to be in no immediate danger. “First of all, I want to say that they are enclosed, which is important, because it’s very cold,” she continued. “The good news is these individuals are obviously dressed for the cold, in their ski gear, but this is a situation we’re taking very seriously and the rescue teams are on the ground trying to restore the power and also to extract people from this frightening situation. We’re going to be watching this very closely.”
By 2:15 p.m., all the occupants were safely removed from the gondola. According to ORDA, Gore Mountain will only resume service after all safety requirements have been met in full.
