A young paraglider got stuck in the ropes of a mountain railway in Upper Bavaria, triggering an hours-long and dramatic large-scale operation. It was only on Friday night that the 26-year-old was freed by the mountain rescue service after around eleven hours and then came to a hospital with minor injuries, as a police spokesman said. Several media had previously reported.

The man had gotten his aircraft caught in the steel cables at the highest point of the Hochfelln cable car in Bergen im Chiemgau, around 80 meters above the ground. A crash at this point would have been life-threatening, if not fatal, the spokesman emphasized.

Rescue by helicopter was not possible

According to the mountain rescue service, the paraglider of the man from Upper Bavaria had wrapped itself around the suspension ropes and thus saved the man from falling. A rescue by helicopter was not possible. The emergency services therefore worked their way carefully to the scene of the accident via the cableway with a special device.

The operation of the railway was stopped after the alarm on Thursday around 3 p.m. Around 20 passengers were then stuck in the two gondolas for hours. They were brought to the ground by the mountain rescue service with life belts. About 50 people who were still at the summit were flown down into the valley in several helicopters - among them infants, the elderly, a pregnant woman and two dogs. The Bundeswehr also took part in the operation. It was initially unclear how the accident happened.