20 safe after cable car drama

Twenty tourists have been rescued after being trapped overnight on a cable car in the German Alps.

Twenty tourists have been rescued after being trapped overnight on a cable car in the German Alps.

An emergency services spokesman said helicopter crews lifted the group, which included several children, to safety after they had spent about 17 hours inside a gondola, suspended some 80m above the ground.

Police said the cable car was stopped yesterday after a paraglider crashed into the cables of the system which climbs the Tegelberg mountain, but strong winds hindered a swift rescue effort.

Tegelberg is within sight of one of Germany’s most popular tourist attraction - the Neuschwanstein Castle, which is often regarded as the inspiration for one of Walt Disney’s fairytale castles.