Lisbon Funicular Crash: Portugal Mourns 17 Dead

By Staff, Agencies

Portugal has declared a day of national mourning after at least 17 people were killed and 21 others injured when one of Lisbon’s famous funicular cars derailed and crashed into a building on Wednesday evening.

Those killed on the Glória funicular were all adults, according to Margarida Castro Martins, the head of the city’s civil protection agency.

She confirmed the injured include Portuguese nationals, along with citizens from Germany, Spain, Canada, Cape Verde, France, Italy, Morocco, South Korea, and Switzerland.

Three of the injured were seriously hurt; two later died in hospital, raising the death toll to 17.

Teams of pathologists from the National Forensics Institute worked through the night on autopsies, officials said.

Public prosecutors have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash, which happened just after 6pm on Wednesday as the evening rush hour began.

The Portuguese authorities also suspended Lisbon’s three other funiculars for safety checks after the derailment.

Known as the Elevador da Glória, the well-known vehicle goes up and down a steep hill in central Lisbon in tandem with one going the opposite way.

Footage showed the crumpled yellow-and-white car on its side after crashing into a building on a narrow bend.

Witnesses described scenes of chaos as an out-of-control streetcar hurtled downhill, slammed into buildings “like a rock,” and left debris scattered, with people screaming and rushing to help the injured.

Lisbon’s mayor called the crash an unprecedented tragedy, saying the city is in mourning and praising the swift emergency response.

The government declared Thursday a national day of mourning, calling the crash a tragedy that brought grief to families and shock to the nation.

The president, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, lamented the crash and expressed hope that authorities would soon establish its cause.

The Glória line, a popular Lisbon funicular carrying 3 million passengers a year, uses two 40-person cars linked by a haulage cable and electric motors.

Carris said “all maintenance protocols have been carried out”, including monthly and weekly maintenance programmes and daily inspections.

Lisbon’s city council suspended operations of other streetcars and ordered immediate inspections, local media reported.

European leaders offered condolences after the crash. Spain’s PM Pedro Sánchez expressed solidarity with victims’ families and wished the injured a swift recovery.

European leaders expressed condolences after the crash. Italy’s FM Antonio Tajani voiced solidarity, while EU chief Ursula von der Leyen offered sympathies. The UK said it stood ready to assist any affected Britons. The tragedy comes amid Lisbon’s tourism boom.