At least seven people died and 39 others were injured when a passenger bus (registration number Lu 2 Kha 2121) heading to Kathmandu from Rupandehi plunged 100 meters into the Trishuli River at Ghatbeshi in Gajuri Rural Municipality-5 of Dhading at 4:40 AM Wednesday.
The deceased have yet to be identified. Deputy Superintendent of Police Santu Jaiswar, spokesperson for District Police Office, Dhading, said that they are trying to ascertain the identities of the deceased.
A team of more than 100 personnel including divers from the Armed Police Force, Nepal Police and Nepal Army was deployed for the rescue operation after the accident.
According to DSP Jaiswar, five people died on the spot while divers later recovered two more bodies from the river.
DSP Jaiswar said that the team rescued 39 others including foreign nationals who were injured in the incident. Fourteen of them have been taken to Kathmandu for treatment, while the rest are being treated at Gajuri Hospital and Gajuri’s primary health center, he added.
Eighty percent of the bus is submerged in water and it is suspected that more people could still be missing in the river.
Police have detained the bus driver, 38-year-old Hariram Harijan of Lumbini Sanskriti Municipality-9, Rupandehi.
