SURKHET: One person has died and 13 others are feared missing after a passenger bus en route to Kalikot from Surkhet plunged into the Karnali River on Thursday morning.

According to the Karnali Province Police Office, the mini-bus (Karnali Province 02-001 Kha 1055) veered off the road and fell into the river at around 11:30 AM at Chamundabindrasaini Municipality-7.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Jayaraj Sapkota, chief of the Karnali Province Police, confirmed that the body of one individual has been recovered from the site. Preliminary police estimates suggest that 13 other passengers remain missing.

“Based on the headcount when passengers got off to eat at a roadside eatery, it is understood that there were 14 people on board the bus,” DIG Sapkota said.

A police team has reached the accident site and a search and rescue operation is currently underway for the missing passengers.