At Least 27 People Killed in Bus Crash

At least 27 Indian pilgrims died and 16 others were injured when a bus veered off a highway in Nepal and plunged towards a river, according The Associated Press.

The impact ripped the roof off the vehicle, before it came to a stop on a rocky bank, narrowly avoiding the fast-flowing waters below.

Rescue teams battled the encroaching darkness and recovered 27 bodies from the crash site on the Prithvi Highway, close the Marsyangdi River.

The remaining 16 passengers were airlifted to Kathmandu for urgent medical treatment, said Armed Police Force spokesperson Shailendra Thapa. A Nepal army helicopter carrying a medical team was also despatched to the accident site.

The accident took place around 75 miles west of Kathmandu. Thapa added that, due to the challenging conditions and fading light, efforts to remove the wreckage had been postponed until Saturday.

All 43 passengers on board were Indian nationals, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu confirmed. It added that it is coordinating with local authorities to manage the ongoing rescue and relief operations.

The bus had departed from Gorakhpur, India, and was en route to Kathmandu from the popular tourist destination of Pokhara when the tragedy struck.

The passengers were among the thousands of Hindu pilgrims who travel from India to Nepal each year to visit sacred sites. According to local reports, the group was on its way to the Pashupatinath Temple, a highly revered shrine dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva in Kathmandu.

This is not the first time the area has witnessed such a catastrophe. In July, two buses were swept away by landslides and landed in the Trishuli river, close to the site of Friday’s crash. Only three out of 65 passengers survived. Many bodies were never recovered, and the search for the buses is still going on.

The weather often plays a part in accidents of this kind. The monsoon season, which lasts from June through September, brings heavy rainfall to most parts of Nepal, sometimes triggering landslides and flooding.

The conditions make the already treacherous mountain roads even more dangerous. They also complicate search and rescue efforts. The raging rivers, swollen by rain, become particularly hazardous, turning any recovery mission into a daunting task.

Added to this, many of Nepal’s roads and vehicles, and buses in particular, are old and poorly maintained.