- Written by Thomas Mackintosh
- BBC news
One person was killed and 10 injured when a cable car cabin exploded after colliding with a broken pole in southern Turkey.
A support tower collapsed near Antalya on Friday night, sending passengers plummeting to the ground.
The entire cable car system was bogged down while emergency workers tried to evacuate stranded passengers.
The Ministry of Justice announced that an investigation into the accident has been launched.
A total of 128 passengers were rescued from 16 cable cars in Antalya's Konyaltı district on Friday night, Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Agency said.
But by Saturday morning, 43 passengers remained stranded, officials said.
Turkey's Interior Ministry said in a social media post that more than 500 rescue workers, including seven helicopters and mountaineering experts, remained at the scene Saturday.
Turkish Health Minister Dr. Fallettin Koca also paid tribute to X.
“May God have mercy on our citizens who lost their lives in the accident,” he said.
“We pray for the speedy recovery of the injured. We also wish for the speedy recovery of the rescued victims and those awaiting rescue.”
Operated by the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, the cable car transports tourists from Konyaalti Beach to a restaurant and observation deck atop the 618-meter (2,027-foot) Tunektepe peak.
According to information on the website, the cable car has 36 cabins, each with a capacity of 6 people.
It takes an average of 9 minutes to climb the hill to the Tunektepe facility, which offers panoramic views of Antalya.