Among the dead are three Nepal Army (NA) personnel and one former Maoist combatant. Other deceased include bus driver and 10 passengers, including a 12-year-old boy.
The bus, operated by Midwestern Transport Entrepreneurs´ Association, tumbled down nearly 500 meters off the Dhuliyabid-Bhedawari road at 8:15a.m. The wreckage of the bus was found near Gamkhola of Dasharathpur.[break]
The NA men who died on the spot have been identified as Ram Bahadur Ranabhat of Bhimdal battalion, Rajendra Gurung of Chandiprasad battalion, and Man Bahadur Gaha of Kalidal battalion.
Lalit Bhandari, driver of the bus that was heading toward Birendranagar from Gumi VDC of Surkhet district, succumbed while receiving treatment at Kohalpur Teaching Hospital. Similarly, Buddhi Kala Fauja, a resident of Lekhfarsa VDC of Surkhet, died while undergoing treatment at Midwestern Regional Hospital, Birendranagar.
Mamata Khadka, Dipa Dhakal and Kumar Poudel of Dasarathpur; Keshar Magar and his 12-year-old son Prajwal of Gumi VDC; Yaman Midun of Satokhani; Chandra Kala Raut of Kalyan; Ajit Sunar of Lekhfarsa; and former Maoist combatant Tanka Raj BK of Dalekh, died on the spot. One of the dead is yet to be identified.
Thirteen of the injured are said to be in critical condition. Of them, Tara Budha, Nanda Lal Sunar, Gandhi BK, Jaishara Gumi, Manoj Gurung, Parbati Sunar and Dilli Gautam of Surkhet and Yogendra Khadka of Doti have been referred to Nepalgunj for treatment.
Meanwhile, the cause of the accident is not yet clear. The police suspect that the bus slipped off the road while trying to make way for a vehicle coming from the opposite direction.
Krishna Prasad Sapkota, chief of District Traffic Police Office of Surkhet, who reached the accident site, has said technical problems might have led to the accident. “The road where the accident took place is wide enough,” said Sapkota.
“I think the bus fell off the road because of some technical failures.”
Bishnu Bahadur Khadka, chairman of the Midwestern Transport Entrepreneurs Association, has refuted Sapkota´s claim. “The road was too bumpy,” he said. “Thick fog that reduced visibility might be another factor that led to the mishap.”
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