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Death toll rises to 67 in plane crash in Nepal

Sunday, 15 January 2023 8:19 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 15 January 2023 10:35 AM ]

This picture purportedly shows locals watching as grey billows of smoke rises from the wreckage of a crashed passenger plane in Pokhara, Nepal, Jan. 15, 2023.

At least 67 people are confirmed dead after a plane carrying 72 people crashed in Nepal on Sunday, police said.

"36 bodies were found in the gorge where the aircraft crashed.” police official AK Chhetri told AFP.

The twin-engine aircraft, crashing near the Pokhara International Airport on Sunday, was carrying 72 people on board, including two infants, four crew members, and 10 foreign nationals, including five Indians, said Yeti Airlines spokesman Sudarshan Bartaula.

An assistant chief official in Kaski district said earlier that, "We have sent some survivors to the hospital for treatment."

The plane's wreckage was on fire and rescue workers were trying to put out the blaze, local official Gurudutta Dhakal said, adding that "responders have already reached there and trying to douse the fire. All agencies are now focused on first dousing the fire and rescuing the passengers."

"The loss of lives in a tragic plane crash in Nepal is extremely unfortunate. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the bereaved. Om Shanti," Nepal's Civil Aviation Minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia, tweeted.

Footage shared on social media showed black smoke billowing into the sky, apparently from wreckage strewn across the crash site.

Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has called an emergency cabinet meeting after the plane crash, a government statement said.

Nepal has some of the world's most remote and tricky runways, flanked by snow-capped peaks with approaches that pose a challenge even for accomplished pilots.

Aircraft operators say the Himalayan country also lacks infrastructure for accurate weather forecasts, especially in remote areas with challenging mountainous terrain where deadly crashes have taken place in the past.

In May 2022, all 22 people on board a plane, operated by Nepali carrier Tara Air, died when it crashed shortly after it took off from Pokhara and headed for Jomsom, a popular trekking destination.

Moreover, in March 2018, a US-Bangla Airlines plane crash-landed near Kathmandu's notoriously difficult international airport, killing 51 people.

The European Union has banned all Nepali carriers from its airspace over safety concerns.

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