Troubled Tussey Hopes To Re Open Before New Year. Blames Accident On Weakened Springs
Following a recent chairlift malfunction which injured five people and left many others stranded.
Tussey Mountain hopes to re-open this weekend. However the lift must first pass muster from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry’s Bureau of Occupational and Industrial Safety Elevator Division.
General manager Sue Matalavage said in a news release“As part of this investigation, chairs were removed and studied and grips were transported to be examined by a third-party investigative company. At this time, it appears that weakened spring packs inside the chairlift grips caused Saturday’s incident, and as a result, we are replacing this entire system on our lift.
“Upon completion of this upgrade, the Department of Labor and Industry investigators will return to Tussey Mountain and again inspect our equipment before we re-open. … Pending the completion of state inspections, our targeted re-open date is for Saturday, Dec. 23.”
“Because we operate year-round, our chairlift is inspected both in the spring and the fall,” she said. “These inspections include the testing of haul rope, which was most recently completed in October 2017 by Mountain Wire Rope Services, and testing of chair lift grips, which was completed in October 2017.
“Load testing was most recently completed in August 2017. All of these tests led to the official state inspection, which was completed on Nov. 14, 2017. All of Tussey Mountain’s equipment passed these inspections.”
“We wish to thank the first responders who quickly arrived to the scene and assisted our National Ski Patrollers in evacuating the lift and attending to any injured individuals. We look forward to continuing our mission of providing safe, fun outdoor activities and events to our neighbors and guests,”
“We are grateful to learn of the progress being made with their recoveries,” Matalavage said. “We will continue to work with these individuals, although we will not provide any further statements regarding these individuals out of respect for their privacy.” the release from Tussey said.
