This article originally appeared on Powder.com and was republished with permission.
In the early hours of the morning on September 14, somewhere around 4:00 a.m., 30 gondola cars came crashing to the ground—again. An unknown vandal cut the 55-millimeter-thick cable on Squamish BC’s Sea to Sky gondola, causing the gondola cabins to tumble to the ground. An investigation by the Canadian Mounted Police is ongoing. No injuries were reported.
“This individual has no regard for their own life and limb,” said the manager of the Sea to Sky Gondola, Kirby Brown, in a conversation with Canadian Broadcast Corp. “They wanted to do what they did, they did it swiftly, they did it with skill.”
This is the second time in just over one year vandals have cut the cables on the Squamish gondola, which goes from the base near Howe Sound to a viewpoint near the summit of the Stawamus Chief. No one was charged in the 2019 vandalism. The gondola accesses numerous ski touring zones in the winter, as well as a lifetime of granite rock climbing. Repairs from the first incident on August 10, 2019, cost between $5-10 million. Already, Brown is looking to rebuild again. According to CBC, he put in an order for a new cable at 8 a.m.
Representatives from the Sea to Sky Gondola were unavailable for comment, but a statement on their website reads: “The gondola line was cleared last night at 11 p.m. and all staff and guests are safe. As history has shown, we are a resilient team and community. We want to thank everyone for their outpouring of support this morning and we will be sharing information as it becomes available. The gondola is closed and we ask that the public stay away from the area for the safety of everyone.”
Brown told CBC that the crews haven’t been able to fully assess the damage due to smoke from U.S. wildfires, which means helicopters used to survey the scene can’t fly.
“The Sea to Sky Gondola is an integral part of this community and we very lucky no one was injured,” Sgt. Sascha Banks said in a news release. “Someone in our area has seen something or has heard something and we are asking them to call us immediately with any information.”
Closed until further notice, the gondola carries 400,000 visitors annually. “We’re all stunned and shocked,” said Brown.
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