Oklahoma Family Among Those Stranded In Gateway Arch

Sunday, July 22nd 2007, 3:37 pm

By: News On 6

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A family from Oklahoma was among about 200 people stranded inside the Gateway Arch in Saint Louis when the power went out at the landmark. Eli Lawson of Claremore says that some people went into panic mode during last night's outage but that for the most part, people remained calm.

Officials say it appears one of nine cables pulling the south tram to the top of the Arch failed last night about 8:45 p.m. after it came in contact with an electrified rail, causing the system to blow a fuse.

The Arch's deputy superintendent, Frank Mares, says that visitors at the top of the Arch had to wait about three hours to get down and that those inside the tram cars waited about two hours.

The Saint Louis Fire Department say at least two people needed medical attention, but no one was seriously hurt.

Lawson says a park ranger did an excellent job keeping the public informed and that when visitors returned to the base of the Arch, they received refreshments and refunds.