Battagram: Names of schoolchildren stranded in cable car emerge

BATTAGRAM: A military helicopter has arrived to save eight people including schoolchildren stuck in a cable car after two of its wires snapped in Allai Tehsil in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Battagram district on Tuesday, ARY News reported.

The incident occurred early Tuesday morning at 8am when the six students and two locals were on the way to school, according to Allai tehsil Chairman Mufti Gulamullah.

The names of the eight people including schoolchildren stuck midair in Battagram cable car include Irfan Omraiz, Osama Sharif, Rizwanullah, Attaullah, Niaz Zaib, Sher Nawaz, Gulfraz and Abrar.

While exclusively talking to ARY News, from the stuck chairlift, a man named Gulfaraz said seven schoolchildren and another man are stuck in the chairlift.

He said they are stuck midair in the chairlift from 7 in the morning and two ropes of the chairlift have already been broken. We are still waiting for help, he added.

Meanwhile, Interim Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar has directed authorities to rescue all the people stuck in the cable car.

The chairlift accident in Battagram, KP is really alarming. I have directed the NDMA, PDMA and district authorities to urgently ensure safe rescue and evacuation of the 8 people stuck in the chairlift.
I have also directed the authorities to conduct safety inspections of all such…

— Anwaar ul Haq Kakar (@anwaar_kakar) August 22, 2023

He has directed the national and provincial disaster management authorities to utilise all the available resources and issued directives to ensure safety measures for cable cars in the hilly areas.