Pokhara, 23 February | A horrific road accident claimed the lives of 17 people and left 24 others injured after a passenger bus plunged toward the banks of the Trishuli River in Dhading district during the early hours of Monday. The bus, bearing the registration plate Ga 1 Kha 1421, was en route from Pokhara to Kathmandu when it veered off the Prithvi Highway at Bhaisigauda in Benighat Rorang Rural Municipality-5 at approximately 1:30 AM. Upon receiving reports of the disaster, a specialized rescue team including divers from the Armed Police Force Disaster Management Training Institute in Kurintar was immediately dispatched to the site. They were joined by personnel from the Nepal Police and the Nepal Army to carry out the intensive emergency operations.
According to DSP Shailendra Thapa, assistant spokesperson for the Armed Police Force, the 24 injured survivors were successfully rescued from the wreckage and rushed to various nearby hospitals for urgent medical treatment. The bodies of the 17 deceased victims currently remain at the crash site as authorities work through the recovery process. Rescuers highlighted that the midnight timing of the crash and the difficult terrain made the operation exceptionally challenging. As of now, the identities of both the deceased and the injured have not been formally established, and the specific cause behind the fatal plunge remains under investigation. Local authorities are continuing their efforts at the scene to ensure no other passengers are missing, while the nation mourns this significant loss of life on one of Nepal’s busiest highways.
