KUALA LUMPUR, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- At least 80 people were trapped inside cable cars for nearly four hours at Malaysia's northern resort island of Langkawi after the system malfunctioned, officials said Sunday.

State news agency Bernama quoted Langkawi Development Authority chief executive officer Azizan Noordin as saying that 89 tourists had arrived at the base station about 9:30 p.m. local time after being trapped inside the cable cars for about four hours.

Technicians were sent to replace a faulty bearing in the system, which had been the cause of the breakdown, he said.

Local fire and rescue department said in an earlier statement that personnel were dispatched after being alerted in the evening. Early information indicated that some 800 people were stranded at the station on the top of the hill apart from those stranded midair.