In a tense operation that gripped the world’s attention, army commandos executed a daring mission to rescue eight people stranded in a suspended cable car.
The incident occurred in the Battagram District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan on Tuesday, August 22, when a snapped cable left six children and two adults suspended hundreds of feet above a canyon, prompting a race against time to secure their safety.
The group, including schoolchildren, ages 11-15, en route to their school, found themselves in a perilous situation when one of the cables supporting the car gave way over a river canyon.
The nation watched as the military, alongside other rescue teams, worked tirelessly to orchestrate the successful evacuation.
Caretaker Prime Minister, Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar commended the collaborative efforts of the military, rescue departments, local administration, and citizens.
As helicopters were unable to operate after sunset, the rescue strategy shifted from airborne attempts to a precarious maneuver involving a functional cable and a makeshift chairlift. Video footage captured the tense moments as a child was harnessed and carefully brought to safety, with the commandos’ ropes swaying in the mountain winds.
The helicopter-assisted operation was carried out carefully, considering the potential risk of the helicopter’s air currents further jeopardizing the already weakened cables. Earlier in the day, military helicopters conducted reconnaissance flights, and a brave airman descended by harness to provide essential supplies.
The Pakistani army praised the exceptional skills of its pilots and acknowledged the help of local cable experts. The rescue was deemed “unique” and “an operation of unprecedented difficulty.” The incident has prompted an official review of the safety standards of cable cars and chairlifts nationwide.
Getting trapped in cable cars due to poor maintenance and infrastructure issues is not uncommon in Pakistan’s mountainous terrain, leading to fatalities and injuries.