Some 200 skiers were stranded in chair lifts after a gondola broke down at a resort in the French Alps, said French authorities.
Rescue operations were under way and no injuries were reported.
An official with the prefecture in the eastern Isere region said on Sunday that most of the skiers were evacuated after spending one or two hours stuck on the gondola at the Chamrousse resort.
The gondola cars run 25 meters (82ft) above the ground, reports the Associated Press.
Violaine Demaret, the prefecture official, says two civil security helicopters dropped rescue personnel over every car to open the roof hatches, release the skiers inside and lower them down to safety.
