Portugal in shock as Lisbon’s iconic Gloria cable car derails, leaving 16 dead

4 Sep 2025 • 9:59 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

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At least 16 people died and 23 were injured when Lisbon’s historic Gloria funicular derailed and crashed into a building on Wednesday evening (03 September), authorities confirmed.

Footage from Wednesday (03 September) showed that the hillside funicular in Lisbon was destroyed. Emergency workers were pulling people from the wreckage.

Officials reported that some of the deceased were foreign nationals but did not reveal their identities or nationalities.

President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa offered his condolences and called for a quick investigation to find out what caused the accident, which took place around 6 p.m. local time.

Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas described it as “a tragedy that our city has never seen,” as Portugal prepared for national mourning following the disaster.