67 people rescued from gondolas that got stuck at a ski resort

NORTH CREEK, N.Y. — A mechanical issue left 67 skiers and snowboarders stranded on gondolas at an upstate New York ski resort on Wednesday, officials said.

Workers toiled for several hours as the 20 Northwoods Gondolas kept the skiers at Gore Mountain airborne for several hours, WHAM reported.

Members of the New York State Police and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation responded to the scene in the Adirondacks resort, located approximately 85 miles north of Albany, at 9 a.m. ET Wednesday.

Rescuers ascended up lift towers, moved across cables and then rappelled into the cabins from above, according to The New York Times. The rescuers then used ropes to lower the skiers onto the snow. The process took about five hours.

“We are very thankful for the outcome, which was everyone was safe,” Darcy Norfolk, communications director for the Olympic Regional Development Authority that operates the mountain, said in a statement.

Norfolk said that a tower wheel, known as a sheave, was moved out of alignment, triggering a safety sensor that is designed to stop the lift.

“I saw it when it slipped off the roller,” Dan Laurie, who was riding in one of the gondolas with his wife, told the Adirondack Daily Enterprise. “I said, ‘Oh boy, we’re going to be here for a while.’”

It was a windy day on the mountain with a high temperature of 19 degrees, the Times reported.

Dave Higgins, 73, was stuck in one gondola with four other people, the newspaper reported. A season ticket holder at Gore Mountain, Higgins has been skiing for 58 years. He said the delay “was kind of an adventure” and relaxed and joked with his fellow passengers.

Still, he was relieved when he heard the rescue team outside.

“We heard a click and the door unlatched and she rappelled down and came into the car and then, you know, it was a little bit of joking involved too,” Mr. Higgins said. “Oh, nice of you to drop in.”

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