Some skiers in Edmonton were at higher altitudes on Friday — but instead of sitting at the top of Rabbit Hill, they were stuck in a chairlift for a short period of time.
All 32 chairs on the lift came to a halt around 3 p.m. today. Jim Sutherland, the general manager of the ski hill, said when the lift stops, there is a backup evacuation motor. But after the lift stopped in this situation, that motor failed too.
A selfie from the top of a stationary chair lift at Rabbit Hill on Friday. (Supplied)
"In this case, we had an electrical problem that was compounded by a mechanical problem," he told CBC News. This forced hill operators to clear the lift using ropes and harnesses with the help of firefighters.
No one was hurt during the evacuation.
Sutherland said in his 35 years at the ski hill, a rope and harness evacuation has only happened five times. He said anyone who had a ticket to ski today can bring their ticket in for another day's worth of skiing.
He just hopes he gets a chance to serve the customers again. "If I had a chance to talk to all my customers, I would want to apologize for the problem today," he said. "That's not what they came out here for, and I hope we get to give them another day of better service."
