Alpe d’Huez, Pic Blanc cable car hits a crane truck: around fifteen injured

The accident occurred at around 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, 26 August, at the departure point of the third section leading towards Pic Blanc, the highest point in the French ski area at an altitude of 3,330 metres.

According to information released by the Isère Prefecture and reported by local media, around 50 people were in the cabin. The impact caused the passengers to lose their balance, violently throwing them onto the floor of the cabin.

The crane arm was in the cabin’s path

The cabin had just left the intermediate station, located at around 2,700 metres, when it encountered the raised arm of a crane truck used for ongoing work in the area in its path.

According to the initial reconstruction provided by Fabrice Boutet, CEO of SATA Group, the company that operates the lifts at Alpe d’Huez, the vehicle should have had its arm lowered as the cabin passed. The circumstances and responsibility for the incident will now have to be clarified by the investigations.

The collision reportedly occurred around 40 metres after departure. Images published by the French press show the point of impact on the lower part of the cabin.

Five people taken by helicopter to Grenoble

The initial assessment released by the Prefecture indicated that 13 people were treated as requiring urgent but non-life-threatening care, while three were initially classified as requiring life-threatening emergency care. Five passengers were taken by helicopter to CHU Grenoble Alpes, while the other injured people were treated at the scene or at a healthcare facility in the resort.

Fortunately, the condition of those involved proved less concerning than initially feared. In the afternoon, SATA’s CEO told the local newspaper Le Dauphiné Libéré that all the passengers taken to hospital had been discharged and that none was in serious condition.

Injuries to the ribs, knees and shoulders were nevertheless reported, along with facial wounds. One child reportedly suffered several broken teeth.

The téléphérique du Pic Blanc closed for checks

The téléphérique du Pic Blanc will not carry passengers on Thursday 27 and Friday 28 August. The suspension is also due to forecast winds at altitude and deteriorating weather conditions, but the closure will above all allow Poma technicians to remove the cabin involved in the accident.

The cabin will be repaired and subjected to structural checks to determine whether the impact caused any deformation. According to the operator’s initial assessments, the cabin’s main structure does not appear to have shifted.

The lift should resume operation on Saturday and Sunday with a single cabin, before the end of the regular summer season. The accident should not, however, alter the schedule for the modernisation work already under way at the intermediate station.

Another setback for Alpe d’Huez’s landmark lift

The téléphérique du Pic Blanc had already suffered significant damage during the storm that hit the area on the night of 22–23 October 2025. The lift had remained closed for more than three months and was reopened to the public only on 7 February 2026.

The new collision would therefore not be linked to the operation of the cable car, but to the presence of the crane arm within the cabin’s path. The investigation will establish precisely how it was possible to start the lift while the construction vehicle was in that position.