24 Passengers Injured When Cable Car Makes Abrupt Stop

A cable car stopped abruptly after it hit something on the tracks Friday, jolting passengers with such force that some smashed into windows or landed in the street. Twenty-four people were hurt, none critically.

“All of a sudden I saw little old ladies flying everywhere,” said passenger Sandra Besnak.

“Then I noticed my brother injured his shoulder,” said the Pittsburgh woman who was visiting San Francisco with her brother, John Kupchak of Atlanta.

The accident on the cable car system, a popular tourist attraction, happened near Fisherman’s Wharf. Officials were unsure what the cable car struck, said Alan Siegel, spokesman for the San Francisco Municipal Railway.

Siegel said he did not know how many people were thrown off the car. Several people who did not get thrown off were also injured, he said.

Four windows on the car were smashed, apparently by passengers thrown against them.

“It was like running into a brick wall,” said the conductor, who didn’t give his name. “It stopped immediately, like on a dime.”

“This was our first ride on the cable car,” said Nancy Kane of Buffalo, N.Y., who was cut on her head. “I don’t think I’ll go again.”

The car was towed away about an hour after the accident. The line was back in operation about two hours later.

The injured were transported by ambulance to local hospitals. Some were treated at the scene.

“Our most serious case seems to be a possible fractured rib,” said Julie Murray, spokeswoman at Pacific Medical Center where eight passengers were treated.