Skiers were stranded for hours in gondola cabins at Gore Mountain in North Creek, New York, after a mechanical problem forced the lift to shut down, authorities said. Crews carried out a rope-and-harness evacuation from the cabins and lowered people to the ground, taking nearly five hours, officials said, and no injuries were reported.
Gore Mountain is about 90 miles (145 kilometers) north of Albany, and Wednesday’s shutdown left riders suspended in the air at height while lift operations paused. Staff members at the ski area and New York state park rangers conducted the rescue together, using trained equipment and procedures to reach cabins and move riders safely down to the snow.
About 67 skiers in 20 gondola cabins were helped back to the ground during the evacuation, according to accounts from people on the mountain. Those trapped expressed anxiety while waiting to be lowered, including worries about needing to use the restroom, while cold conditions persisted outside the cabins.
Officials said the cabins remained warm enough for riders even with temperatures below freezing because doors were closed and the sun was shining. While the lift was out of service, the ski area and the rangers focused on completing the cabin-by-cabin evacuation in a way that minimized time stranded overhead.
Kevin Bolan, a 64-year-old physician assistant and longtime skier from Newcomb, New York, said he was stuck in one of the cabins for nearly five hours. He described the experience as “sobering” and said it was something he would “probably carry with me for the rest of my life,” and he added that riders may need to plan for being trapped by making sure they can use the restroom and have food with them.
Bolan said the rescues went smoothly and he complimented the professionalism of rangers and ski area staff. He said the teams worked in an organized manner to bring riders down once they had reached the cabins.
The New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority, which operates Gore Mountain, said in a statement that the gondola’s tower wheel assembly moved out of alignment, triggered a safety sensor, and led the lift to stop immediately. The authority said its trained mountain operations team carried out the evacuation and supported guests throughout the process, and that safety remained the top priority.
Park rangers and Gore Mountain ski patrol had trained together for gondola evacuations in November, officials said. After Wednesday’s incident, the gondola lift reopened on Thursday.