Lisbon funicular crash cause revealed as 'snapped cable' in new report

The horror Lisbon funicular derailment that killed three Brits was caused when a cable snapped, a preliminary report on the shocking incident has found.

The early official report from Portuguese authorities has concluded that the funicular carriages "suddenly lost the balancing force" of a connecting cable before the crash on Wednesday. At the time, the Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft Accidents and Railway Accidents found, the iconic transport had travelled no further than six metres.

It adds that the imbalance quickly addressed by the brakeman, who immediately activated both the pneumatic and manual brakes. Unfortunately, the move had "no effect", the report found, and the carriage accelerated to around 60kmph (around 30mph) before crashing and killing more than a dozen occupants.

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Cabin number two, situated at the bottom of the funicular, "jerked backward sharply" at the time of the incident after moving "roughly 10 metres".

The cabin's trolley "became buried at the lower end of the cable channel" as it partially left the tracks while cabin one, at the top of the tracks, "continued descending and accelerated". Authorities have said 16 people were killed in the crash after the cabin left the tracks, three of whom have since been confirmed to be British tourists.

Kayleigh Smith, 36, and William Nelson, 44, were among the dead, as was a third Brit who is yet to be named. The couple had posted a series of photos to Instagram just hours before the crash at around 6pm on Wednesday that were captioned: "Churches and castles, tiles and trams."

A close friend of Ms Smith remembered her in a touching tribute, telling the Daily Telegraph she was a "lovely, lovely lady". They said: "Such a quirky lady, lovely, lovely lady. I've known her since she was in her teens.

"And Will was such a magnificent man. Big beard, charming, very, very, very lovely. Lovely family. The whole family." Also among the dead were five Portuguese citizens, two South Koreans, two Canadians, one US tourist, a Ukrainian, Swiss and French national.

Explanations for the crash have been sought almost since the moment the crash took place, with early concerns settling on the state of the funicular's equipment. The report indicated that equipment aboard the carriages was up to date, and added that a scheduled inspection had even been carried out on the morning of the accident.

However, the report adds that the area where the cable broke is "not visible without dismantling".