119 replies to this topic

[WBSKI]

I just heard this over the radio, hopefully some more detailed info will come soon.

Tower 4 snapped on the Excalibur about an hour ago (2:30pm?), and 3 filled cabins dropped rapidly but stayed on the line (one rested on a bus shelter). There are at least 6 people stranded on the lift between towers 3 and 5. I suppose they can just run the unaffected upper half of the lift, and empty it, but they will still have to evac the lower part.

I will post more when I can. I don't see anything on the webcam yet though.


News story! http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/C...BritishColumbia

All I can say is I am so glad I am not hanging over Fitzsimmons Creek right now (there is one cabin that is filled that is hanging over the creek)

Corrected details: 9:35PM

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This post has been edited by WBSKI: 16 December 2008 - 09:36 PM

[bwilky]

WBSKI, on Dec 16 2008, 03:25 PM, said:

I just heard this over the radio, hopefully some more detailed info will come soon.

A tower "bent over" on the Excalibur about an hour ago (2:30pm?), and two cabins (empty I think) fell from the line (one onto the bus shelter). There are at least 6 people stranded on the lifts. I suppose they can just run the unaffected upper half of the lift, and empty it, but they will still have to evac the lower part.

I will post more when I can. I don't see anything on the webcam yet though.


HERE WE GO! http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/C...BritishColumbia

All I can say is I am so glad I am not hanging over Fitzsimmons Creek right now (there is one cabin that is filled that is hanging over the creek)

Dam that sucks! Especially after their opening of the P2P. I guess that's why Blackcomb closed early today?

This post has been edited by bwilky: 16 December 2008 - 03:31 PM

[WBSKI]

Interesting - when I checked the lift status a few minutes ago all lifts on W-B were closed, now Solar Coaster / Wizard are open again (for downloading only I assume)

[WBSKI]

UPDATE 3 (4:44PM)

A TOWER SPLIT IN TWO AFTER ALL!! And the tower is on the uphill side of Fitzsimmons creek.. This is huge.. WB will be sued for sure by someone... Photo of the damage attached.

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This post has been edited by WBSKI: 16 December 2008 - 04:49 PM

[bwilky]

WBSKI, on Dec 16 2008, 04:48 PM, said:

UPDATE 3 (4:44PM)

A TOWER SPLIT IN TWO AFTER ALL!! And the tower is on the uphill side of Fitzsimmons creek.. This is huge.. WB will be sued for sure by someone... Photo of the damage attached.

I really hope no one actually gets money out of this. No one is hurt, and it wasn't really Whistlers fault. I'm kinda scared to go on the Peak 2 Peak though.

[WBSKI]

IMO: I agree, no one should sue, but I do think it is WB's fault because lift towers don't just snap out of the blue...

They are now rescuing people on the lift, (there are many people on the lift, but only about 6 people on the most affected section, and the people over Fitz creek have not been rescued yet.

CBC inaccuracy: "There are four gondola towers, two on Blackcomb Mountain and two on Whistler Mountain, according to Blackcomb ski resort's website.

The height of the towers range from 36 to 65 metres, the website says.

The tower that snapped is on the Blackcomb Mountain side."

[bwilky]

This is what I don't like about the media. They hear one word the don't even verify it before broadcasting it to millions of people. Whistler is pretty much screwed now.

[jeffe]

Going to love reading the investigation report on this one. From the photo it looks like a clean break pretty high up on the tube. If ice in the tube was a factor then this incident was avoidable. That lesson should have already been learned.

The fact of the matter is that a catostrophic failure of a tower on an a lift is completely unacceptable.

[aug]

Please stop speculating on what happened at W-B. No doubt that the lift technicians will not comment on this incident. We will have to wait for the official press release from the ski area. No comments until ALL the facts are in.

This post has been edited by aug: 16 December 2008 - 06:16 PM

[WBSKI]

That is a good point aug, all we know 100% now is what we see in the pictures. I did just hear that 1 person has had serious injuries so far.

[not really a liftie]

jeffe, on Dec 16 2008, 06:34 PM, said:

Going to love reading the investigation report on this one. From the photo it looks like a clean break pretty high up on the tube. If ice in the tube was a factor then this incident was avoidable. That lesson should have already been learned.

The fact of the matter is that a catostrophic failure of a tower on an a lift is completely unacceptable.

Like Aug said... and after the reason behind this incident comes out use it at your ski area to make sure it doesn't happen there. The cause of this "catastrophic failure of a tower" could be a lesson we can all learn from. Don't be too hasty in pointing fingers.

[bwilky]

In a situation like this how, (Hopefully it hasn't happened before). How long do you think it would take to get it back up and running? I guess their going to have to offer Peak 2 Peak for free for the skiers who can't get all the way over to Wizard.

Also, Whistler has identified on their website that Excalibur is not the peak 2 peak. http://www.whistlerb.../lift/index.htm. I guess you can blame CBC for the crappy reporting.

Update: http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/media/new...8-09/081216.htm

This post has been edited by bwilky: 16 December 2008 - 06:56 PM

[WBSKI]

Here is the final CBC news report: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/...er-snapped.html

There is a video clip on that page, it isn't great but at least it has some nice footage of the Peak to Peak and the old Quicksilver lift.

[vonrollskyway1]

The Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort issued a statement saying a "structural failure on Tower 4 on Blackcomb Mountain's Excalibur Gondola caused the gondola to cease operation. No gondola cabins came off the line." sorry to say,ive NEVER heard of structural failure on ANY vonroll lift.especially vr 101s. at leats noone got killed.thank god for that.

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[Andoman]

Seems odd, I'd like to see some better pictures when they're available. But, the key thing is all of the passengers made it off with only minor injuries.

[egieszl]

WBSKI, on Dec 16 2008, 05:05 PM, said:

IMO: I agree, no one should sue, but I do think it is WB's fault because lift towers don't just snap out of the blue....

You're jumping to conclusions with little to no information. Last time I checked accidents happen and it would be nice if we could just accept that fact instead of always having to point a finger at someone else. Lawsuits are not the answer.

[mikest2]

From WB:

Excalubur Gondola Incident

LATEST UPDATE - 6:25pm PST
The Excalibur Gondola evacuation was completed at 5:51 pm this evening. Fifty-three guests were safely evacuated from the lower line of the Excalibur Gondola after a structural failure on tower 4 caused the gondola to cease operation.

We are very thankful that no-one was seriously injured in this incident. A full investigation by Whistler Blackcomb and the BC Safety Authority is currently underway to determine the cause of the failure.


Earlier Statement Issued at 5:30pm PST
At approximately 2:30pm PST on Tuesday, December 16, a structural failure on tower 4 on Blackcomb Mountain's Excalibur Gondola caused the gondola to cease operation. No gondola cabins came off the line. There were several injuries that appear to be minor. Injured guests were treated at the Whistler Medical Clinic. The cause of the incident is unknown at this time and will be investigated, however the immediate priority has been to secure the tower and evacuate guests.

There is an upper and lower section to the Excalibur Gondola. The failed tower 4 on the lower section was secured by a crane and Whistler Blackcomb Ski Patrol and the Whistler Fire Department immediately implemented an emergency lift evacuation procedure. The upper section of the gondola, independent of the lower section, was unaffected by the incident and was cleared immediately of guests by normal procedure.

Fifty-three guests are being evacuated from the lower section. Whistler Blackcomb Ski Patrol, Whistler Fire Department, RCMP, BC Ambulance and Emergency Social Services are currently aiding in the evacuation and are extending care to guests being evacuated. The evacuation is well underway and is expected to be complete by 6:30pm. Communication to the guests still on-board is currently underway.

The Excalibur Gondola was built in 1994 and undergoes an extensive safety check every year by the BC Safety Authority. The last check took place within the past six months. Each gondola cabin holds eight people. The gondola section where the incident took place is approximate 30 feet above the ground.

A full investigation is underway by Whistler Blackcomb and the BC Safety Authority. Whistler Blackcomb will release further information as it becomes available.

[WBSKI]

This is really weird,

On the radio and on CBC news it said one person (British child) had serious injuries and was transfered to Vancouver, but Whistler never mentions it. All I can say is I am glad that this wasn't a huge disaster, as it could have been.. Egieszl, I agree with you that lawsuits aren't the answer. *Hopefully for W-B's sake there will not be a lawsuit.* I speculate it was a welding failure, but we'll see, I am just about the least knowledgeable person on this forum (I don't have any training in ski lifts, ect)... I agree it was an accident, no one planned or intended the tower to snap. My point is that precautions should be taken to prevent these events.

Now that the actual event is over, I am wondering how long will it take for W-B to reopen this section of the lift? I suppose they will investigate the rest of the towers before they even reopen the upper section of the lift. Then they will operate that + Wizard.

[bwilky]

I don't know if this is the correct term? But wouldn't this be "Jack-Ice". Water got into the towers, and expanded near the welds, causing the upper half to snap. I don't mean to be harsh, but It's not really that bad when they were only really hanging 20 feet off the ground.

[Peter]

I bet Doppelmayr can get a new tower in pretty quickly. The footing and some of the tower head is probably salvageable