Snapped cable caused Lisbon funicular crash, first report says

Portuguese officials investigating Wednesday's deadly funicular crash in Lisbon say a cable along the railway's route snapped, but the rest of the mechanism was functioning properly.

"After examining the wreckage at the site, it was immediately determined that the cable connecting the two carriages had given way," the preliminary report said.

The carriages of Lisbon's iconic, 140-year-old Glória funicular railway are designed to travel up and down steep slopes.

Sixteen people died and about 20 were injured when one of the carriages derailed on Wednesday evening.

Five of those killed were Portuguese along with three Britons, two South Koreans, two Canadians, an American, a Ukrainian, a Swiss and a French national, police said.

Portugal's prime minister, Luis Montenegro, described the incident as "one of the biggest tragedies of our recent past".