To be horrified at being Trapped in a freezing cable car overnight?

[Feminazi]

Because that's how 60 people in the French Alps are spending the night!

What a nightmare for them I went on my first cable car this summer and had to really grit my teeth to get through it. Not sure I'd do it again doing that. Hope they are all down safely very soon.

65 people were rescued before they had to suspend the rescue mission. It'd have been really terrible to be the 66th person. I've see a film about this and that'd probably been in my mind in this situation. Using the toilet would be a main worry for me (as well as the less realistic chance of compound fractures and being killed by wolves - as being trapped would loosen my hold on sensible reasoning I think).

The rescue mission has now resumed - hopefully they'll all be out soon.

I was on that very cable car in June. They are small bubbles for about four / six people. It is very high and very windy, so much that in all the years I've been visiting Chamonix, that lift has been closed pretty much every time we've tried to use it. Finally took the trip in June and it is awesome.

However, even in June, at that altitude during the day it was cold. Cold enough for us to put on all our layers while we were up there. Nearly three months later in the year, add the wind and the overnight temperature drop and those people will be very cold indeed. They will have been given blankets and according to the news there are first aiders up there with them, but still very unpleasant and scary.

Helicopter rescue in the high winds is difficult, so hope its less windy today and they get down safely. I don't think they do the "women and children first" thing, they will take each bubble one at a time and empty it. It is entirely possible that there are children up there.

The windows open in the pods.

They've been given blankets, food and water and I imagine receptacles to wee in and then throw the wee out the window. Ive been in that cable car, would not like to spend the night in it!

DH and I have been on this cable car. The line is about 5km long and it takes a while. Great views but a long way down and nothing but rock, glacier and crevasses!
The pods are small too, there would no point in appointing a corner to use as a toilet!

I was horrified too OP - partly because I know that mountain range really well. I've actually camped on the glacier near there in the past (though on that occasion I had a thermal mat and decent sleeping bag). I have once, when I was young and daft in my early twenties, been caught out in that mountain range with an unexpected night in one of those orange emergency bags when none of us had a sleeping bag (I've done plenty of unintended nights out, but the rest have been with sleeping bag). It was uncomfortable and unpleasant, but (a) it was the middle of summer and (b) we did at least have extra clothes. I'm guessing not everyone in those cable cars will have had loads of extra layers with them. I just hope the temperature didn't drop too low overnight last night.

Actually seeing this morning's news, I see they did manage to get blankets, water and energy bars to them last night before they had to call off the rescue attempt. The helicopters are up again now.

All now rescued, one child was involved, all safe and well. There is a video and interviews on the news.

Phew! That's good.

I traveled to work by cable car for a year - got stuck a few times

this would be my idea of hell!

How utterly terrifying - these are pods that sit 4.

When we ski often adults go in one car and children (2x10, 11 & 12) go in another. I can't imagine how horrifying it would be in this situation.

Horrific!

Someone must have had to do a poo at some point. I wonder if they just had to put their coat over the head and squat down and pretend they were in a lovely private bathroom somewhere.

It doesn't bear thinking about mitzy!

Oh poor people! How scary.

We have cable cars near me at Matlock bath. I'm terrified off them and wouldn't ever go in them. Bloody hell. It would be absolutely my idea of hell on earth and is seriously be panicking (and losing rational thought too).

Erk...my actual, literal worst nightmare, ever since a film I saw as a very small child. Terrifying. Thank goodness all are OK.

It's a pretty terrifying (but beautiful) ride even when it's working in broad day light.

I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like up there. DH and I could barely look, and I could only look through my camera (got lots of lovely photos!!!). I think I lost several lbs in sweat in that hour of my life.

Glad they are all safe.

We got stuck as kids on a youth club outing for about an hour once in high winds. It was a bit scary at the time but now I'm thinking omg the poor adult (probably a high school student!) we had with us must have been super stressed.

They're all out now. If that had been me or DS we'd still be up there because there is NO way either of us would climb up on the roof to be winched up to a helicopter. None.

Much much worse seadragon : en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cavalese_cable_car_disaster_(1998)

Never getting on a cable car again after reading those links!

Mitzy Someone must have had to do a poo at some point. I wonder if they just had to put their coat over the head and squat down and pretend they were in a lovely private bathroom somewhere.

This thread has made me realise I'm bizarrely uninhibited about urinating/defecating in front of people... although have never actually done the latter, I imagine it'd be a case of needs must sensible head taking over.

I was on a canoeing/camping trip, and as we were so close to water we couldn't bury poo so had to go into nappy bags and had a sealed container to put them in... No-one did! I think the brain can often rule the body for a short time in that regard.

However, I've never been in a cable car and what bothers me is what do you do with the, erm, waste products then? Are there openable windows or does someone have to climb onto the roof to chuck it out? And how do you get onto the roof - is there a ladder?

Ailicece If that had been me or DS we'd still be up there because there is NO way either of us would climb up on the roof to be winched up to a helicopter.

Arghh! Surely they attach the harness before you climb onto roof? Tbh the whole "cable car" thing is to me equally scary!