Four passengers of a bus (Ba 2 Kha 2702) died of electrocution and seven others severely injured after the vehicle touched a high-voltage power cable in Baluwa, Baramchi VDC-2 of Sindhupalchowk on Sunday afternoon (December 21, 2014). The deceased and the injured were riding on the roof of the bus when they accidentally came in contact with the power cable.

The deceased have been identified as Rekh Bahadur Syangbo, 45 of Goltho VDC-4,  Manamaya Bhujel, 70 of Batase VDC-3, Bikash Tamang, 25 of Gumba VDC-6, and Sarkini) Syangbo, 45 of Pangtang VDC-8.

Shedding more light on the accident, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Deepak Raj Kharel said, “The locals lost their lives instantly after coming in contact with the high voltage power cable.”

According to Republica, the injured victims were given primary medical treatment at the Jalbirehave been transported to Kathmandu for medical treatment. Before this they were given preliminary treatment at Jalbire Primary Health Centre.

As reported by the medics at the Jalbire Primary Health Centre, four of the victims were in critical condition. The victims have sustained deep burns on various body parts. There were 70 passengers on board the bus at the time of the accident.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Kharel also pointed out the cause of the horrific incident adding, “Now we know that this is an old problem. The power line had been hanging low for months. The accident would never have happened had the authorities fixed the cable on time.”

Recalling the incident, one of the survivors, Singlal Tamang, recounted the horrible moment.

“People, who were inside the bus, started to jump out as the bus stopped suddenly upon touching the power cable. The electric shock was felt even inside the bus. Before the situation could turn worse, we exited the bus and saved ourselves,” said Tamang.