Passengers rescued from stranded NY cable cars

What should have been a routine ride across New York’s East River became an hours-long ordeal after what US authorities described as a power failure left two cable cars carrying almost 70 people dangling hundreds of feet in the air.

Police responding to the incident last night mounted a daring midair rescue, hoisting passengers from the stranded cars using a diesel-powered rescue gondola capable of holding about 10 people at a time.