Emergency workers in France have scrambled at first light on Friday (local time) to rescue 33 people, including a 10-year-old child, trapped in cable cars high over the slopes of Mont Blanc.

BFM TV reported that repairs to tangled cables had been successful and that those stranded were being brought back to the base of the ride.

Mathieu Dechavanne, chief executive of the Mont-Blanc Company that manages the system, told AFP the cable cars “restarted five minutes ago” just before 8:00am (local time).

He said the remaining passengers could now be rescued without the use of helicopters.

“We were in contact with them throughout the night, the people were cold,” local police chief Stephane Bozon said as the rescue operation resumed.

A freezing night above the alps

More than 110 people were initially trapped on the 5km ride between two mountain peaks at an altitude of over 3,000 metres when three cables became tangled.

In a statement, La Compagnie du Mont Blanc, which runs the cable car, gave no reason for the accident but said the cables could become tangled due to an abrupt halt to the system or in strong winds.

Four helicopters rescued 65 people from the four-person cable cars before night fell over Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps. Another dozen people were evacuated during the night by rescuers using ropes.

Those still stuck had access to emergency blankets, energy bars and bottles of water in the cars.

The cable car connects Aiguille du Midi peak on the French side of the mountain and the Helbronner summit on the Italian border. The panoramic ride over glaciers usually takes 30 minutes to complete.