Heater blamed for Alpine cable car tragedy

The fire that killed 155 people trapped in an Austrian Alpine cable car last November started in the heating system, a news magazine reported today.

The fire that killed 155 people trapped in an Austrian Alpine cable car last November started in the heating system, a news magazine reported today.

The weekly Profil cited an employee of the team of experts investigating the cause of the fire as saying the heating system was responsible.

Later this week, the melted-down car is to be transported from the now-sealed tunnel in Kaprun, south of Salzburg, for further inspection.

The fire broke out on November 11 in a cable car heading up a tunnel through the mountainside, killing 155 people including one Briton. It was the worst accident of its kind on record.

Profil cited the head of the expert team, Volker Edlinger, as saying that the fire was able to spread quickly at high temperatures because the cabin was made of a highly flammable compound of moulded fibreglass and plastic.

Other experts cited by the weekly speculated that a defective coil in the heating system was responsible or possibly a parka ignited after being placed on a radiator.

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