A tragic derailment of the iconic Gloria Funicular in central Lisbon on Wednesday has resulted in at least 15 fatalities and left approximately 20 people injured, five of them seriously, according to official sources cited by Portuguese state television and other media. The provisional death toll is feared to rise.
The Italian Embassy in Lisbon confirmed an Italian woman was among those injured, though her condition was reported as non-life-threatening. The embassy stated it is providing assistance and remains in contact with Portuguese authorities and the crisis unit of the Italian foreign ministry.
While many victims remain unidentified, union sources confirmed one of the deceased was the vehicle’s driver. A pregnant woman and her child were among the injured but are reported to have sustained only minor wounds. A Lisbon fire commander noted that many foreign names were identified among the victims, though further details are not yet available.
Preliminary reconstructions by firefighters suggest a cable may have failed, causing one of the two cars to derail and fall from the highest point of its route. Another hypothesis under investigation is a failure of the carriage’s braking system. The wagon crashed into a building adjacent to the tracks near the Plaza de los Restauradores and was crushed upon impact.
Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas, who arrived on the scene alongside Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz, described the event as an “extremely serious, unprecedented incident.” Rescue operations to extract victims from the wreckage are ongoing.
Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa expressed his “deep sorrow” in an official statement, particularly for the deceased and seriously injured. Prime Minister Luis Montenegro also conveyed his condolences, and a period of national mourning has been declared.
The Gloria Funicular, declared a national monument in 2022, has a capacity of 45 people and is used by an estimated one million tourists and residents annually. A previous maintenance system failure in 2018 nearly caused an accident but resulted in no casualties.
In a related development, Portuguese media report that a recent tender for the maintenance of the Elevador da Glória was canceled days ago by Carris, the public company managing most of Lisbon’s public transport, as all bids exceeded the budgeted amount. Union sources had previously filed numerous complaints regarding the urgent need for adequate maintenance of the city’s funiculars.
Pedro Bogas, Chairman of the Board of Carris, stated the company “scrupulously respected all protocols,” citing quadrennial, interim, monthly, and weekly inspections. He announced an internal inquiry would be opened. In response to questions about the outsourcing of maintenance to an external company for 14 years, Bogas did not comment on the driver’s health conditions. A union representative had earlier raised concerns about this practice in a televised interview.