Sea to Sky Gondola's new security system failed during 2nd cable-cutting incident, lawsuit says
Gondola owner sues security company for negligence
The operators of the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish, B.C., have filed a lawsuit claiming its new "state-of-the-art" security system failed when a vandal climbed one of the attraction's towers and cut through its cable for the second time in two years.
The claim filed in B.C. Supreme Court on Monday said the motion-activated alarm was installed in early 2020, months after the cables were severed for the first time in summer 2019.
The beefed-up system was supposed to prevent history from repeating itself.
Within the year, history did anyway.
"The alarm was not triggered at any point up to or during [the 2020] security breach," the lawsuit read.
"As a result of the security breach and the alarm failure, the vandal was able to sever the cable which parted catastrophically."
The company's allegations have not been proven and the security company, Unified Systems (USI), has not filed a response to the claim in court.
Alarm didn't have any power on night in question, claim says
The gondola company said it hired USI to design a new security system in January 2020, five months after the first cable-cutting incident the previous August.
"Sea to Sky ... made it clear to [the firm] that security was paramount so as to ensure that such an event would not happen again," the claim read.
USI said it would install a "state-of-the-art, custom" security system to run around the clock, according to the lawsuit. If triggered, the lawsuit said, the alarm was supposed to activate bright lights and a blaring PA system warning intruders they were on camera and police had been notified.
WATCH | Footage shows security guard narrowly avoids being hit by gondola cars in 2020:
The system was installed in February 2020.
That September, someone walked up to one of the gondola's towers, scaled its ladder and sliced the cable again.
The lawsuit claimed the alarm failed because it wasn't getting enough — or any — power at the time. It claimed USI has more details about what went wrong but that they would only be provided to the court "on a confidential basis" if the case goes to trial.
The company has previously said damage from both incidents cost more than $10 million.
The lawsuit claims damages for breach of contract and negligence.
No arrests made
Both crimes are still unsolved.
At a news conference marking the two-year anniversary of the second incident on Wednesday, RCMP released a profile and a thermal image of the suspect in one or both cases.
Investigators believe the suspect would be "extremely fit" and deeply familiar with the surrounding area and the tools one would need to sever such a cable and escape unhurt.
Police are considering criminal charges of mischief and of mischief endangering a life because a security guard was nearly killed by the falling gondola cars in 2020.
WATCH | B.C. RCMP Sgt. Chris Manseau delivers information about the suspect:
The attraction draws hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, carrying passengers up a steep mountain ridge near the Stawamus Chief for panoramic views of Howe Sound. It's also a significant player in the $95-million local tourism sector, according to Tourism Squamish.
The company is offering a $500,000 reward for anyone with information leading to an arrest and conviction.
It has since hired an in-house security team.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Eva Uguen-Csenge