The end cable caused a crash, the first report is said

Portuguese officials investigating a deadly punicular disaster on Wednesday in Lisbon say that the railway cable has clicked, but the rest of the mechanism functions properly.

“After considering the remains of the site, it was immediately established that the cable connecting the two carriages has retreated,” the National Transport Safety Service report said.

The brakeman tried to apply emergency brakes, but failed to prevent derailment, investigators added.

Sixteen people were killed and about 20 were injured when the upper carriage of the emblematic railway line Yellow Gloria crashed into a building.

Five of the killed are Portuguese along with three Britons, two South Koreans, two Canadians, an American, a Ukrainian, a Swiss and French citizen, police said.

The 140-year-old Funicul is designed to travel up and down the steep slopes of Lisbon and is an important form of transport for the residents of the city-a popular tourist attraction.

Although Brakeman activates the pneumatic brakes and the parking brake, when the cable loosens, it is unclear whether another, automatic brake appeared as it should have been, the report said.

It says the carriage traveled at about 60 km/h (37MP) when it hit the building.

The seven -page report, which emphasizes that it does not give “valid conclusions” about why the crash happened, says it is not yet clear how many people have traveled on the carriage, which can hold up to about 40 passengers.

Portugal Prime Minister Luis Montenegro described the incident as “one of the greatest tragedies of our recent past.”