Located off the southern coast of mainland Singapore, Sentosa (Isle of Tranquillity) was initially known as Pulau Blakang Mati (Island Behind Death). Starting from the 1880s, the island was an important British military base with a number of forts built on it to protect the southern shipping lanes. In 1970, the island was renamed Sentosa following a naming contest organised by the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board (STPB). The development of the island into a tourist and recreation resort came under the management of the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC), which was formed in 1972.A cable car service connecting Sentosa to the mainland was officially opened in 1974 by then Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Goh Keng Swee. Built at a cost of $5.8 million, the cable cars were an instant hit with 1,000 visitors using the service the day after it opened. The loop service started at the Mount Faber station, passed the main station at Jardine Steps, and crossed the waterway to end at the Carlton Hill station on Sentosa.In 1983, tragedy struck when two cable cars plunged into the sea after the cable line was struck by the oil drilling vessel Eniwetok. The safety features of the service were improved following the incident.
