Bus Plunge in Jumla, 18 killed and 13 Injured
March 17: Eighteen people were killed and 13 injured when a bus veered off the road at Raralihi along Kalikot-Jumla section of the Karnali Highway in Jumla this morning.
The bus heading for Kalikot from Jumla headquarters fell 200 metres down the road before plunging into the Tila River. As many as 33 people were on the bus when it met with an accident.
According to police thirteen people died on the spot, while five breathed their last on way to the hospital. The condition of three of those injured is said to be critical. Two passengers escaped unhurt.DSP Ram Prasad Gharti at Zonal Police Office said bus driver Sagar Budha, 28, and and his helper Ratan Kami,17, were among the deceased.
A couple in their 50s, Kali Bahadur Budha, 55, and his wife Resham Kala, 50, and a 25-year-old man Devu Rokaya and his three-month-old son died on the spot. All the deceased and the injured hail from Jumla and Kalikot.
Ten of the injured are being treated at Jumla-based Karnali Academy of Health Sciences. Three of the critically injured have been airlifted to Kohalpur-based medical college for treatment.
Preliminary investigation shows that the road was slippery due to snowfall the previous night.