Dozens of Skiers Rescued From Gondola at Gore Mountain
The New York State Police and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's forest rangers responded to calls from Gore Mountain after the Adirondacks ski area's Northwoods gondola stopped today.
Calls for rescue were made around 10:35 a.m. EST after a non-emergency mechanical alignment issue with a component of the lift system was detected. In accordance with the ski resort's evacuation procedure, the gondola was stopped immediately.
Around 20 gondola cars were stopped, stranding 67 skiers on the lift. No injuries were reported from the incident, and all skiers were manually removed from the lift by ski patrol by 2:15 p.m.
A video from the rescue has been embedded below. Keep reading for more. Video by Linda Clark.
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The gondola issue was originally reported incorrectly as a power outage during an unrelated press conference being held at the time by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. "It's very cold," Hochul said. "The good news is these individuals were obviously dressed for the cold in their ski gear, but this is a situation we're taking very seriously, and the rescue teams are on the ground trying to restore the power, but also to extract people from this frightening situation."
The Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), which manages the state-run ski hill, stated that the Gore Mountain gondola will return to service only after all safety requirements are fully met.
"The Olympic Regional Development Authority, along with Gore Mountain, regrets the disruption to guests and appreciates the patience and cooperation shown today," said ORDA Director of Communications, Darcy Norfolk in a statement. "Safety remains our top priority, and our teams are fully trained and experienced in managing and resolving situations of this nature."
Gore Mountain's Northwoods gondola is an eight-person Poma lift that was installed in 1999. When operating normally, it has a ride time of 6.6 minutes. Some skiers were trapped on the lift for upwards of two hours in temperatures hovering around 15 degrees.