KATHMANDU, Nepal (WSN) — A tragic bus accident in Nepal claimed the lives of at least 27 people and injured 16 others. The bus, carrying Indian pilgrims, veered off Prithvi Highway and crashed into a river, officials reported.
The vehicle rolled off the road and down a slope, its roof being torn off before coming to a halt on the rocky riverbank, just short of the rushing Marsyangdi River.
Rescue teams recovered 27 bodies from the wreckage and airlifted the 16 injured passengers to Kathmandu for medical care, according to Armed Police Force spokesperson Shailendra Thapa.
The crash site, near Abukhaireni—about 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of Kathmandu—will only be cleared on Saturday due to darkness and the challenging recovery conditions, Thapa added.
The bus, which was traveling from the Indian town of Gorakhpur to Kathmandu via Pokhara, had 43 passengers, all Indian nationals. The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu confirmed the details and noted that the bus had fallen about 150 meters (500 feet) from the highway. The embassy is coordinating with local authorities on rescue and relief efforts.
Local news reports indicate that the pilgrims were en route to Kathmandu to visit the Pashupatinath Temple, a significant Hindu shrine.
In July, a similar tragedy occurred in the same area when two buses were engulfed by landslides, resulting in only three survivors out of 65 passengers and only half of the bodies being recovered. The wreckage of those buses is still missing, with ongoing search efforts.
The monsoon season in Nepal, which lasts from June to September, brings heavy rains that cause landslides and floods, as well as swelling and turbidity in rivers, complicating rescue operations. Divers, scanners, and heavy magnets have been used to search for wreckage, but no further traces have been found.
Bus accidents in Nepal are often attributed to poor road and vehicle conditions, exacerbated by the country’s mountainous terrain and narrow roads.
