Nearly 2 dozen people who rang in new year stranded on icy New Mexico tram are rescued

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21 people were rescued after being stranded on frosted tram cable cars for hours overnight in New Mexico on New Year's Eve into New Year's Day. 

The state's search and rescue team used ropes and helicopters to bring the nearly two dozen individuals trapped on the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway to safety. 

All 21 individuals were employed by the Tramway or the mountaintop restaurant, according to KOAT. 

A passenger is rescued Saturday, January 1, 2022, after a Sandia Peak Tramway car that was stranded overnight on New Year's Eve in Albuquerque, N.M. A Bernalillo County Fire Department spokesman said 16 of the stranded people were rescued as of Saturday afternoon as rescue operations continued. The spokesman said those aboard the car when it got stuck at 10 p.m. Friday were all employees of the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway or a mountaintop restaurant. (Roberto E. Rosales /The Albuquerque Journal via AP) (Roberto E. Rosales /The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

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Lt. Robert Arguellas, a Bernalillo County Fire Department spokesperson says the team was able to rescue the first 20 people from one car, The Associated Press reports. The 21st person, who remained stuck on another car by their lonesome, was rescued several hours later. 

The rescue mission began when operators moved the car to a nearby support tower halfway up the mountain, where rescuers hiked up the mountain to provide blankets and supplies to those trapped inside the heated car.

Over several hours, the search and rescue team lowered the employees about 85 feet to the ground, where they were later taken to a nearby landing zone. From there they were taken by a helicopter in smaller groups at a time to the base of the mountains. 

A passenger is lowered from a Sandia Peak Tramway car that was stranded overnight on New Year's Eve on Saturday, Jan. 1, 2022, in Albuquerque, N.M. A Bernalillo County Fire Department spokesman said 16 of the stranded people were rescued as of Saturday afternoon as rescue operations continued. The spokesman said those aboard the car when it got stuck at 10 p.m. Friday were all employees of the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway or a mountaintop restaurant. (Roberto E. Rosales /The Albuquerque Journal via AP) ((Roberto E. Rosales /The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

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The last employee, located in the second car much higher than the first group, could not be lowered by rope initially. Instead, the tram system lowered the tram car down to the support tower, where rope was used to lower the person to rescue.

No injuries were reported from the incident.

Michael Donovan, Sandia Peak Tramway general manager, told KOAT that operators needed to stop the tram car after icing from the moisture and cold temperature affected the emergency cable. 

"That cable actually dropped down within the system, and it was not safe to operate," said Donovan.

A rescue helicopter works to help passengers who were stuck overnight on a Sandia Peak Tramway on Saturday, Jan. 1, 2022, in Albuquerque, N.M. A Bernalillo County Fire Department spokesman said 16 of the stranded people were rescued as of Saturday afternoon as rescue operations continued. The spokesman said those aboard the car when it got stuck at 10 p.m. Friday were all employees of the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway or a mountaintop restaurant. (Roberto E. Rosales /The Albuquerque Journal via AP) (Roberto E. Rosales /The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

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The first group of 20 employees were on their way down to end their work shifts when the malfunction occurred. On the other hand, the 21st employee was on their way up for an overnight security shift when the shut-down happened. 

The Sandia Peak website issued an alert that they will remain closed on Sunday after shutting down operations on Saturday after people were stuck on the cable cars. The site promises to provide updates once they know more about resuming operations.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.