Just under 50 skiers were trapped in Gondolas at the German ski resort of Brauneck, 60km south of Bayern in the Langgries area. The unheated Gondolas were unable to move, as skiers suffered in the cold alpine conditions. The emergency followed a technical fault, which in turn caused the lift system to shut down completely.

This left the 30 four man Gondolas stationary, swinging 70 metres in the air, on the 2.5 km long lift. The Emergency services managed to lower a number of the skiers from the Gondolas. Those unable to be released this way were brought back to safety by helicopter. Around 100 Firefighters and other emergency personal were involved in the rescue.

None of the trapped, whose age ranged from 10 to 66 years old, were injured. The Press Association reported Peter Gutmann as saying: “I was stuck up there for two and a half hours until the helicopter came to rescue me. When I saw the firefighters and the helicopters, I knew it would take a while.”

Brauneck, which only has the one Gondola lift, and is due to host a round of the Women’s Europacup on the 12th of February. The family orientated resort is relatively low, reaching only 1,700 metres, and features 34km of pisted runs. Click here for webcam showing the Gondola.