How The Locals Stepped In For Dangling Cable Car Rescue In Pakistan

People have been watching an incredible rescue all throughout Pakistan and the world. A cable car hung precariously over a ravine in a remote area of the country’s northwest. Schoolchildren were confined inside for several hours. At this point, all eight people have been saved. The entire nation of Pakistan as well as the international media were engrossed in suspense and dread as the rescue of eight individuals, including six children, from a dangling cable car at roughly 275m (about 900 ft) in Pakistan progressed. As Pakistan’s air force, military, and civilians on the ground fought to save eight people, mostly children, from the frail cable car that was hanging 600 feet over a river below after one of its cables broke, the sixteen-hour rescue operation captured the attention of the entire world.

In a Pakhtun village, around 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Battagram district in the northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, six children and two adults boarded a flimsy cable car that locals refer to as a “dolly” on Tuesday morning, August 22. For years, the cable car had provided a lifeline to the otherwise remote village of Pashto, located deep within the mountains of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province. It had made it easier for pupils to get to school or for sick members of the community to travel to a hospital, which would otherwise be a difficult trek.

Two of the three cables cracked five minutes into the roughly 10-minute voyage, leaving the wire dangling perilously. Military personnel started a daring rescue operation while the automobile dangled precariously, removing two passengers from it using a rope linked to a helicopter before utilizing a zip line as night fell to carry the others to safety. The spectacular rescue operation lasted for about 12 heart-pounding hours. The Pakistani military described the rescue effort as “very difficult and grueling,” but added that the “unparalleled skill and efficiency” displayed by the rescuers had contributed to a successful outcome.

How Locals Carried Out The Rescue Of Dangling Cable Car In Pakistan

With his older brother Nasir and two other coworkers, Sahib Khan, a local of the adjacent Bisham town, traveled to the destination. The Khan Brothers, who had been contacted by the local government, had been operating an improvised cable car company in the area, which was full of hills and big trees. Rescue personnel removed the first passenger, 14-year-old Irfan, using a sling operation with the help of the helicopter, half an hour before dusk. As it became apparent that the aerial operation could not continue into dusk, hope gave way to fear. Communication was difficult because there was spotty mobile phone coverage in the region and it had been nearly 12 hours since the tragedy.

At that point, the team of the Khan Brothers acted. The trapped passengers were extricated from the cable car using more conventional techniques. Authorities stated that all of the stranded pupils had left four hours later. It was challenging to ask the children to hold a rope. Sahib tied one of the young passengers to the dangling gondola after pulling closer and fastening himself to his smaller cable car. He claimed that maintaining the kids’ composure was the toughest task.

Following Sahib’s return, local rescuers took over and used the same technique to bring the other four kids and the two adults to safety. As the eight people were all lowered again. The rescue was hailed as a “miracle” by the locals.

It was not immediately obvious what caused the cable failures. According to a statement from PMO, Mr. Kakar, Pakistan’s caretaker prime minister, referred to the car’s breakdown as “alarming” and ordered the authorities to conduct safety assessments on all Private Mountain lifts to guarantee their safety.