Eight individuals have received prison sentences from a Turkish court following a fatal cable car incident at a popular Mediterranean resort that claimed one life and injured seven others.
A court in southern Turkey handed down the sentences Monday, with four defendants receiving seven-and-a-half year terms after being found guilty of causing death and injury through negligence, according to state-run Anadolu news agency. The remaining four defendants received sentences ranging from three years and four months to five years for identical charges.
The tragic incident occurred on April 12, 2024, when a cable car gondola struck a support pole and broke apart, causing passengers inside to fall onto the rocky terrain below. Following the collision, the entire cable car system was forced to shut down, trapping 174 tourists in their gondolas suspended high above the ground. Some passengers remained stranded for almost 23 hours before rescue operations could safely evacuate them.
The cable car system transports visitors from Konyaalti Beach up to a dining establishment and observation deck located at the top of Tunektepe peak, which rises 618 meters (2,010 feet) above sea level. The accident took place during the Eid al-Fitr celebration, which marks the conclusion of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.
The majority of those convicted in the case worked for ANET, a company owned by the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality that manages the cable car operations in this Mediterranean coastal city.
