[qingcharles]

Summary: the wrecked cabin had started its descent from the top station, only got a few seconds down before the steel cable pulled out of its socket; the cabin went into freefall down the tracks; the staff activated all the brakes available, but they were clearly not designed for this situation and could not provide enough stopping force before it derailed and hit a wall and a lamp-post at approx 60km/h.

[yongjik]

Wow, only 60km/h.

If it was a modern bus hitting a building at that speed, most occupants would be able to walk out. Really puts into perspective how much safety improved in the past 100 years.

[vascocosta]

One of the issues is that the body consists of a wooden frame, surrounded by a thin sheet of steel to avoid extra weight. So it's not very strong, plus the bulk of the 14 ton mass lies on the bottom where the bogies are. When it derailed and tipped over, the strong structure underneath the cabin sort of crushed the lightweight structure where the passengers were.

[inferiorhuman]

Passenger cars from 40 years ago would struggle to protect you at those speeds.