After an accident that killed 14 people in northern Italy on Sunday, allegations including manslaughter and negligence are being considered.

Give any friend a story

As a subscriber, you have 10 gifts to send every month. Anyone can read what you share.

Authors: Elisabetta Povoledo and Gaia Pianigiani

Stresa, Italy-Investigators said on Monday that a cable car crash occurred near the picturesque Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, killing 14 people due to broken cables and malfunctioning emergency brakes.

On Sunday afternoon, the cable car was about to reach the terminus of Mount Motarone at an altitude of nearly 5,000 feet, and suddenly began to slide backwards. It slid for hundreds of meters at a height of nearly 40 feet, hit a pillar, and then fell to the ground. There is only one survivor, a 5-year-old boy.

Hikers and local residents said they heard a hiss, presumably when the cable broke and twisted in the air, followed by a loud noise.

The chief prosecutor of the nearby city of Verbania, Olympia Bossi, said in a telephone interview: “The cable was broken and the car slid into the valley without being stopped by the brake system.” “We are trying to determine that this is happening. The reason and the reason for the rupture in the first place."

Ms. Bossi said that investigators are investigating possible allegations against cable car operators, maintenance companies and other unspecified entities, including manslaughter, attempted manslaughter, and violation of safety measures leading to public transport disasters. She said that no one has been charged so far, and investigators are still evaluating different hypotheses.

"This is a terrible moment for me, my community, and Italy as a whole," said Marcella Severino, the mayor of Stresa, a lakeside town where the cable car starts.

The accident appeared to be the worst cable car disaster in Italy since 1998, when a low-flying US military jet cut into the cable of the ski lift in Cavalese in the Dolomites, killing 20 people.

Although the cable car is a tourist attraction, it is also very popular with locals.

Roberto Daveri, who works as a gardener in Stresa, said that he often takes the cable car to the top of the mountain and then hikes or bikes down the mountain. "We are all shocked and depressed," he said.

Francisco Coti, the chief coordinator of the civil defense agency in the area and one of the first rescuers to reach the top of the mountain, called the scene of the accident "destructive." He said the tragedy will hit the tourism industry in areas whose economies have been hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

As residents expressed their shock, Stresa was exceptionally quiet on Monday. "This is a tragedy that shouldn't happen, it shouldn't happen here, and it shouldn't happen anywhere," Samantha Zanoni said while drinking at Café Savoy.

She said that after months of intermittent coronavirus lockdown, the tourist season has just begun, and the accident could not have been worse.

City officials declared Monday a day of mourning. The bell rang at noon and the store was closed for 14 minutes, one minute for each victim.

Gianpaolo Rosati, a professor of engineering at the Politecnico di Milano, said that cables can break due to various reasons, including corrosion or mechanical failure, such as excessive pressure on the cable by the winch.

Mr. Rosati said that accidents like this are usually a combination of human error and equipment failure.

He said the cable car may have broken away from the supporting cable supporting the car and cut the cable that pulled it up and down the mountain. Mr. Rosati said that in that case, the brakes would not work properly because they were working on supporting cables.

Leitner Ropeways, the company responsible for the maintenance of the cable car, stated that it had carried out a magnetic inspection of the main cables at the end of 2020 and found no problems.

The Stresa-Mottarone cable car was built in 1970. It was closed for renovation from 2014 to 2016.

Piergiacomo Giuppani is the leading engineer responsible for the safety of more than 100 cable cars in Italy. He said that parts, brakes and cars are routinely inspected every morning, and workers will take the car every day to ensure that the system is operating normally and is open to passengers.

He said: "I don't remember any accident that happened because the mechanical parts or part of the infrastructure on the cable car was broken." "Europe has strict regulations and strict inspections."

Mr. Rosati said that the cable car in which the lift cars balance each other is usually very safe and the possibility of a systemic breakdown is very small.

The only survivor of the accident, 5-year-old Eitan Biran, lost his parents, his 2-year-old brother and their great-grandparents, who were visiting from Israel. After undergoing initial surgery to treat multiple fractures, he received sedation at the Turin Hospital. A hospital spokesperson said his condition was serious but stable.

On Monday, the official account of the Italian firefighters tweeted: “The tragedy of the Stresa cable car is nothing but silence and sorrow today.” “Be strong, Aitan. The Italian firefighters are all with you.”

Red and white police tape blocked the entrance to the top tram station in Motarone. The clouds are low and open from time to time, and you can see the magnificent view of Lake Maggiore below.