PITTSBURGH — Nearly 30 passengers were rescued from the Monongahela Incline on Saturday after the cars stopped with people inside.
CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTOS FROM THE SCENE
A Pittsburgh Regional Transit spokesperson says the incline stopped working unexpectedly between 30 and 40 feet from the stations around 2:25 p.m. Operations staff tried to restart the incline before a manual rescue effort began.
Twenty-two passengers were on the east car, which stopped close to the lower station, the spokesperson says. Five passengers were on the west car, which stopped close to the upper station.
Pittsburgh paramedics had rescued all five passengers from the west car using a rope system by 4:30 p.m., the Pittsburgh Public Safety Department says.
Four passengers from the east car had been individually rescued by 5:44 p.m.
To hasten the process, crews began bringing passengers down using a fire ladder truck until all passengers had been rescued by 6 p.m.
No injuries were reported.
The incline will not be operational on Sunday as PRT works to determine what caused the cars to stop, a spokesperson says.
PRT will operate shuttle buses from the bus stop behind Station Square to the Mon Incline Upper Station until the incline reopens. Buses will run every 15-20 minutes.
“I want to extend my deepest thanks to the first responders - paramedics, firefighters, and police officers who helped get these riders to safety,” said PRT CEO Katharine Kelleman. “I also want to apologize to the riders who were inconvenienced today and thank them for remaining calm in a high-stress situation.”
Channel 11 spoke with people who were on the incline when it stopped.
“It started to go up, and as soon as it picked up speed, it just suddenly stopped,” rider Trevor Graham said. “I just figured a couple minutes, they’ll hit a reset button or something. It didn’t turn out that way.”
Graham shared photos of the cramped cars and rescuers in harnesses helping tourists and locals get down safely.
“It’s a very narrow walkway,” said Gary, visiting from Phoenix, Arizona.
“Kind of like an obstacle course,” added Valerie.
Riders say that the switch from manual rescues to the ladder truck rescue was a relief.
“It was nice seeing the truck come in because I knew we were going to be up there for a couple more hours, if not,” Graham said.
One rider, Gina Faulter, questioned why it took so long.
“My first thought was the fire truck,” Faulter said. “I don’t know why it was everyone’s last thought.”
“Relieved,” one woman said after getting back on solid ground. “I’m ready to get a drink, ready to eat and finally get out of here.”
Editor’s note: This story has been corrected with an accurate number of passengers in each car. Original reports from Pittsburgh Regional Transit were incorrect.
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