KATHMANDU: At least 26 people died and 36 more were injured when an overcrowded bus veered off a mountain road in Nepal, officials said Friday.
Government administrator Krishna Chandra Poudel said the bus plunged off the road Thursday near a village about 400 kilometres west of the capital Kathmandu. The bus rolled about 650 feet down a slope before crashing into the Pasagad river.
Local villagers helped police and soldiers pull the bodies and the injured from the wreckage.
Poudel said rescue helicopters reached the accident area late Thursday and were able to fly 18 of the injured to a hospital in Nepalgunj city.
Another eight injured people were being flown out on Friday, but had to wait for the weather to clear up.
Accidents in Nepal are mostly blamed on poorly maintained roads and vehicle conditions. The country is covered by mountains and the roads are also usually narrow.
