Kathmandu, Feb 23, (dpa/GNA) – A passenger bus carrying 44 people plunged into a river in central Nepal on Monday, killing at least 19 and injuring about two dozen others, officials said.
The bus was travelling from Pokhara to Kathmandu, when it is believed to have lost control and veered off a mountain road into the Trishuli River near Benighat, around 80 kilometres west of the capital.
Twenty-five passengers were rescued and treated for minor to moderate injuries, said Prakash Dahal, a deputy superintendent of police.
The cause of the crash has not yet been determined.
Mohan Prasad Neupane, a local district official, said the narrow, mountainous stretch of road had seen similar accidents in the past.
“We conducted the search and rescue using boats due to the difficult terrain, some 200 metres below the road by the river,” Neupane told dpa.
Foreign tourists were among those on board, including nationals from China, the United Kingdom and New Zealand, officials said. A British national was confirmed among the dead.
GNA