Italian investigators probe why cable car brake ‘didn’t work’

Rescuers work by the wreckage of a cable car after it collapsed near the summit of the Stresa-Mottarone line in the Piedmont region, northern Italy (Vigili del Fuoco Firefighters via AP)

The investigation into Italy’s cable car disaster will focus on why the lead cable snapped and why the emergency brake did not engage and prevent the cabin from careering back down the mountain, the lead prosecutor said.

Verbania prosecutor Olimpia Bossi outlined the contours of her investigation into the incident, which killed 14 people, based on what she said was objective, empirical fact of what occurred.