Gondola tower collapses at Whistler

More than 50 rescued from cars left dangling

“Several factors converged to cause the tower failure. The structure of the tower is such that two parts are spliced together. Water had seeped into the tower which had turned to ice with the recent extreme cold temperatures. The ice build-up caused the tower splice to rupture, an extremely unusual situation referred to as “ice-jacking”.

Hmmmmmm.  Doesn’t the Whistler Gondola look similar to Whiteface’s Cloudsplitter Gondola? Yes, Yes it does. Doppelmayr who built the Whistler Excalibur Gondola that collapsed also built the Whiteface Cloudsplitter Gondola. Governor Paterson please please please don’t cut Gore and Whiteface’s budget anymore!  I would rather run out of toilet paper and have to use paper towels . . . ummmm nevermind . . . Safety inspections are key!

****Latest update from the Whiteface Web site - The Cloudsplitter Gondola is down today for maintenance. The Little Whiteface Double chair will provide access to the Little Whiteface summit.

If you want to read more about the Whistler Gondola accident click here.

E.