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What caused the Portugal tram crash?

Asked 10 hours ago

Answer

The Portugal tram crash was likely caused by a disconnected or snapped cable, despite recent inspections. Investigations are ongoing, with questions about why the braking systems failed to prevent the accident.

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France 24

Deadly Portugal funicular crash likely due to problems with cable

France 24 · Recent
France 24
France 24
Recent
  • A cable linking two funicular cabins disconnected shortly after a visual inspection. 9s
  • No anomalies were detected in the cable or braking systems during the scheduled inspection. 24s
  • The brakeman attempted to activate emergency brakes, but it is unclear if automatic brakes functioned. 32s
  • The crash resulted in 16 deaths, including 11 foreign nationals. 1m 2s
  • Passenger numbers on Lisbon's funiculars increased by 53 percent between 2022 and 2024. 1m 35s
TransportDisaster

References

Deadly Portugal funicular crash likely due to problems with cable
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France 24
1 day ago
Deadly Portugal funicular crash likely due to problems with cable

Portugal's National Transport Safety Office stated that a cable linking two cabins disconnected not long after it passed a visual check.

Deadly Portugal funicular crash likely due to problems with cable
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France 24
1 day ago
Deadly Portugal funicular crash likely due to problems with cable

The brakeman tried to activate emergency brakes, but it's unclear whether another automatic brake came on as it was meant to.

Three-year-old German boy rescued from Lisbon streetcar crash
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Euronews
3 days ago
Three-year-old German boy rescued from Lisbon streetcar crash

The historic funicular had its last daily inspection just nine hours before it derailed.

U.S. citizen killed in Portugal streetcar crash
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CBS News
3 days ago
U.S. citizen killed in Portugal streetcar crash

Local media reported a frayed steel cable up higher on the hill had snapped, causing the derailment.

U.S. citizen killed in Portugal streetcar crash
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CBS News
3 days ago
U.S. citizen killed in Portugal streetcar crash

There are questions about why the manual and automatic brakes did not activate to stop the carriage.

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