One of the 21 passengers who spent 15 hours in freezing temperatures on Albuquerque's Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway on New Year’s Eve didn't take away only bad memories from the experience.

Colleen Elvidge, a server at the restaurant TEN 3, which is 10,300 feet above sea level at the crest of Sandia Peak, told NewsNation Prime in a video that her day began normally and employees were leaving for the day by way of the tram.

“That’s our only form of transportation to and from, typically, unless there’s an emergency on top, and then you can go back down the side of the mountain,” Elvidge said. “Yes, everything started normal. The storm was kind of coming in, but it didn’t seem that it was bad enough to close down.”

Colleen Elvidge recalled for NewsNation Prime her experience being trapped for 15 hours on the Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway in freezing temperatures on New Year's Eve. | LinkedIn

A snowstorm with “whiteout” conditions came to make rescue difficult for the passengers trapped because tram lines froze near the peak, KRQE reported. Trapped passengers included managers, kitchen staff, servers and bartenders, Elvidge said.

“A lot of them are jokesters. They all have great personalities. Of course, they’re in the service industry, so we’re almost like actors, but it was great,” Elvidge said. “Everyone made light of it. For the most part, it was really, really nice.”

Concern for their safety went through their minds, but the passengers knew that people were doing what they could to get them down safely.

“(The rescue crew) had to hike about 3 to 4 hours to get to us. They brought us supplies…at least until they were able to figure out if we were going to have to hike down or if a helicopter was going to be able to land because of the high winds,” Elvidge said. “Each of us had to rappel down from the tram car about 80 feet, and then we had to walk to the helicopter, and then we got back to base safely.”

Elvidge isn’t afraid for her life when she returns to ride the tram, but she said that a couple days break would be good.

Friends on Facebook praised Elvidge.

“I’m changing my New Year’s resolution to be more like Colleen,” Kathi Jourdan Briones said on Facebook. “You’ve always been positive and forthright. You see a situation for what it is but can still choose to make the best of it. You’re brave, funny, and intelligent, and now you can repel in inclement weather.”