Italy investigators probe why cable car brake failed

The investigation into northern Italy's cable car disaster that killed 14 people would look into how the lead cable snapped and why the emergency safety brake failed to activate, the lead prosecutor announced Monday.

"We are starting from the empirical evidence. The cable sheared and the system of safety brakes clearly did not work, otherwise the cabin would have stopped," said Verbania Prosecutor Olimpia Bossi. "Why that happened is naturally under investigation."

The gondola, on a funicular line that takes visitors up a mountain near Verbania, crashed to the ground on Sunday, killing all aboard apart from a 5-year-old Israeli boy living in Italy.

The Israeli foreign ministry identified him as Eitan B. The child suffered multiple broken bones and is in a critical condition in a Turin hospital. His parents, younger brother and two great-grandparents were among the dead, the ministry said.

All the other victims were residents of Italy, according to local media reports.

Italian prosecutors have opened a probe into suspected involuntary manslaughter and negligence.

Italy 'committed' to understanding cause of disaster

Transport and Infrastructure Minister Enrico Giovannini visited the area on Monday and said the government would also set up a commission to investigate the "technical and organizational causes" of the disaster, while prosecutors would focus efforts on any criminal blame.

"The government, as well all the institutions, are naturally committed to understanding the causes, to understanding what happened," Giovannini told reporters.

The transport ministry said that a preliminary check of the cable line's safety and maintenance record show that the structure underwent maintenance work in August 2016 and that a full maintenance check was performed in 2017.

In November and December 2020, other controls were carried out on the cables themselves, it added.

Local media reported that the wires were not due to be replaced until 2029.

The cabin could hold up to 40 people, but was less than half full due to coronavirus related restrictions.

The lift station — usually popular with visitors wanting to scale Mottarone — reaches a height of 1,491 meters (4,900 feet) and overlooks several lakes and the alps. It had been closed much of the winter due to the pandemic and had reopened in April.

The disaster is Italy's worst cable car disaster since 1998, when 20 people died after a low-flying US warplane accidentally cut through a supporting cable.

mvb/jlw (Reuters, AP)