An Ottawa resident who survived a fatal funicular crash in Lisbon last month expressed surprise at the revelations in a recent report about the incident and called for increased accountability from Portuguese authorities.
Hind Iguernane and her husband Aziz Benharref were on the tram with 25 other passengers when it derailed on September 3 due to a snapped cable, leading to a rapid descent and a collision with a building. Benharref was one of the 16 individuals who tragically lost their lives in the accident.
Reflecting on the ordeal, Iguernane, currently recuperating in Morocco with her parents, vividly recalled the traumatic event, including the thick smoke permeating the air with a gunpowder-like odor.
A recently released preliminary report by Portugal’s Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Accidents in Civil Aviation and Rail highlighted numerous issues with the Ascensor da Gloria, also known as the Gloria Lift, a popular tourist attraction. The report revealed that Carris, a public transport company in Lisbon, had utilized a cable that lacked certification for transporting passengers, among other critical findings.
Although the report did not definitively attribute the cable to the accident, it underscored the ineffectiveness of the tram’s braking system despite efforts to engage both manual and automatic brakes before the crash. Moreover, Carris had no documentation proving the emergency brake had been tested in a scenario where the cable failed.
Expressing her dismay, Iguernane emphasized that the report exposed severe negligence rather than an unforeseeable accident. She asserted the need for legal accountability for those responsible.
The investigative body clarified that the report’s purpose was not to assign blame or determine liability, with a final report slated for release next year. Subsequently, the entire board of directors of Carris, including chairman Pedro de Brito Bogas, resigned collectively.
Iguernane, who sustained hip and shoulder fractures in the accident, refuted the notion of her husband’s death as a mere accident, emphasizing the family’s pursuit of legal recourse amid the absence of communication from Portuguese authorities.
Her brother, Youness Iguernane, echoed the family’s call for transparency and accountability, stressing the importance of receiving compassionate communication over financial compensation. The family contemplates legal action but has not engaged legal representation as of yet.
Recalling the brakeman’s futile attempts to halt the tram’s descent, Iguernane lamented the preventable nature of the tragedy and questioned how such an incident could occur in modern times at a prominent city landmark.
The family remains resolute in seeking justice and answers surrounding the circumstances that led to the devastating crash.