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According to police, four skiers were injured on Tuesday when a gondola crashed in Oetz, Austria. One of them was flown to the clinic in Innsbruck in a critical condition, a spokesperson for Bergbahnen Hochoetz said.

The victims were two men and two young people from one family, the report said. The nationality and exact age of those affected are still unclear.

A gondola of the Acherkogelbahn in Oetz in Tyrol fell into the snow from a height of about seven meters late in the morning. According to the police’s initial findings, a tree had fallen on the gondola cable. The almost three kilometer long cable car transports skiers from the valley to approximately 2000 meters above sea level.

Difficult recovery

According to the cable car spokesperson, the cable car was operating at full capacity when the accident occurred, given the sunny weather. All other skiers could have left the huts safely at the valley or mountain station, a police spokeswoman in Innsbruck said. “The gondolas were empty and operations were subsequently stopped.”

The rescue of the victims was difficult. The accident site was on rough terrain. According to the spokesman for the mountain railway, foot troops and helicopters were in action.

The authorities initially stopped operating the railway. It was said that it was still unclear how the accident happened. “The route is legally clear of trees,” the cable car spokesperson continued. (sda/dpa)