Free Republic

Even in the best conditions, Benny Abruzzo admits that striding from one of the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway towers onto the top of a tram car is a “gulp” step. But what if you have just climbed up that tower’s 80-foot ladder in slippery, frigid conditions in an effort to rescue 20 people who have been trapped in that car, dangling at an elevation of 8,750 feet, for hours. “That tower was covered in six inches of ice,” said Abruzzo, 63, owner of the tramway, the Sandia Peak Ski Area and Sandia Peak’s TEN 3 restaurant. “I had to break...

The group has been stuck since Friday around 10 p.m. because of icy conditions in the area, officials told KOAT. One person is still stranded in the tram car along with rescue personnel. Rescue efforts were temporarily halted at 1 p.m. Saturday because of changing weather conditions. In 1973, 41 people were stuck for 24 hours. In 1982, 49 people were stuck for five hours. Thirty years later, in 2012, 20 people were stuck for five hours and then last year 20 people were stuck for four hours.