At least 16 people are dead and more than 20 others are injured after a funicular streetcar crash in Lisbon, Portugal — one of the deadliest transportation accidents in the country’s recent history.
On Wednesday, Sept. 4, both tourists and locals were riding the Elevador da Glória funicular when one of its historic streetcars derailed and slammed into a building.
One passenger, Rasha Abdo, told ABC News she was in a second tram with her husband and child when it suddenly began to accelerate.
“It was blurry, full of dust. We couldn’t see anything,” Abdo said. After the car stopped, she secured her son while her husband, a doctor, tried to help others. “I asked my husband, ‘Please go up to see if you can rescue someone,’ ” she recalled. “It was too late.”
Another witness, Teresa d’Avó, told Portuguese outlet Sic Notícias that the streetcar “hit the building with brutal force and fell apart like a cardboard box.”
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Portugal’s national emergency service, INEM, said it received calls about the crash at 6:04 p.m. local time. Emergency responders from multiple agencies arrived quickly, according to a statement on Facebook.
Tour guide Marianna Figueiredo told the BBC she was on the scene within “five seconds” to help. At first, she thought the destroyed streetcar was empty.
“I started to climb the hill to help the people but when I got there the only thing I could hear was silence,” Figueiredo said. When rescuers removed the roof, she began to see victims.
Officials confirmed that 16 people were killed and more than 20 were hurt, including international tourists, according to The New York Times, the BBC, and Reuters. Among the injured was a 3-year-old child, the Times reported.
In a Facebook statement, Portugal’s transport workers’ union confirmed that the tram’s driver, André Jorge Gonçalves Marques, was among those killed.
“This is one of the biggest human tragedies of our recent history,” Prime Minister Luís Montenegro said, according to the BBC.
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The cause of the accident is still under investigation. Officials told Portuguese news agency Lusa that preliminary findings will be released on Friday, Sept. 5, the BBC reported. The Aircraft and Railway Accident Prevention and Investigation Office (GPIAAF), along with police and workplace safety authorities, has finished collecting evidence. A spokesperson said an initial report will outline what investigators believe happened and the next steps.
Lisbon is well-known for its historic streetcars, which allow visitors to travel the city’s steep hills without climbing on foot. The Elevador da Glória, designed by engineer Raoul Mesnier de Ponsard, first opened in 1885 and connects Restauradores Square with the Bairro Alto district. Each tram carries about 40 passengers, according to the Times. After the crash, all of Lisbon’s funiculars were shut down as a precaution.
Carris, Lisbon’s public transportation company, said all maintenance checks had been completed, including daily and weekly inspections. The company has also launched its own investigation.
On Thursday, Sept. 4, the Portuguese government declared a national day of mourning.
“A tragic accident involving the Glória Funicular in the municipality of Lisbon on September 3, 2025, caused the irreparable loss of human lives, leaving their families in mourning and the country in shock,” the government said in a translated statement. “The Government decides to declare a day of national mourning as an expression of condolence and solidarity of the Portuguese people.”
