37 stuck for hours in cable car system

New York, July 10: A sightseeing cable car system at the Bronx Zoo abruptly shut down on Wednesday when one of its gondolas went slightly out of alignment, stranding dozens of people for hours high above habitats for baboons and other animals.

Firefighters and police officers used a crane to rescue a family of three from the offline gondola, which swung about 100 feet in the air. They got the gondola back online and restarted the system, allowing the passengers in the other cars to complete their rides before getting off.

The cable car system, called the Skyfari, broke down during its aerial route around 5.30 pm, halting 14 cars, zoo spokeswoman Patti Calabrese said. Thirty adults and seven children were stranded, but no injuries were reported, the police said.

A 14-year-old girl, her mother and another adult relative were plucked from the offline Skyfari gondola around 8.15 pm, the police said.

The other 34 people stepped off the cable cars about 10 pm. The Skyfari, which passes over the butterfly garden, the baboon habitat and part of the African plains exhibit where lions and gazelles roam. —AP