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Mont Blanc cable car to reopen 9 months after dramatic rescue
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This file photo taken on August 05, 2015 shows the Panoramic Mont-Blanc cable car linking the Aiguille du Midi peak to the Helbronner peak in Italy, above the seracs and crevasses of the Glacier des Géants (Glacier of the Giants). The Panoramic Mont-Blanc cable cars, that were stuck overnight on September 9, 2016, thousands of metres up among the Mont Blanc glaciers with some 30 tourists on board, is set to reopen on June 7, 2017. (AFP/Philippe Desmazes)
A
cable car whose dramatic breakdown last September forced 33 tourists to spend the night stranded -- suspended high over the French Alps -- is to reopen on Thursday, local officials announced.
The cars which offer visitors stunning views in the shadows of Mont Blanc will be put back in service after an extensive overhaul, nine months after the incident which made headlines across the world.
The sightseers were trapped in the cars at an altitude of 3,800 metres (12,500 feet) for 18 hours after the cables got crossed last September 8.
Nightfall and deteriorating weather had forced emergency workers to suspend their rescue operation.
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New safety features have been added to the overhauled system, said a statement from the regional authority of Haute-Savoie.
They include a smoother movement out of the station to guard against the cables crossing, and improvements to the back-up engine for the system.
The cabins have also been supplied with emergency kits containing warm clothing and food in case of any future breakdown.
The five-kilometre (three-mile) system connects the Aiguille du Midi on the French side of the mountains with Pointe Helbronner on the Italian border, offering panoramic views of Mont Blanc.
It has been operating since 1950.
